General Information - Formulary Change

HealthSpring may add or remove drugs from our formulary during the year. If we remove drugs from our formulary, or add prior authorization, quantity limits and/or step therapy restrictions on a drug (and/or move a drug to a higher cost-sharing tier), we will notify you of the change at least 60 days before the date that the change becomes effective. However, if the Food and Drug Administration deems a drug on our formulary to be unsafe or the drug’s manufacturer removes the drug from the market or Medicare no longer covers a drug previously covered, we will immediately remove the drug from our formulary.

Prospective (60-day) Formulary Change Notification for National Prescription Drug Plan, Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug Plans, and TotalCare Plans. Every month, the Preferred Drug List (formulary) is updated. Medications on the preferred drug list include both generic and brand-name drugs.

Effective April 19, 2012

On April 19, 2012, Novartis announced that they will cease marketing Valturna® (aliskiren and valsartan, USP) tablets in the US. This announcement was made after consultations with the FDA due to preliminary results of the halted ALTITUDE study.

Valturna® has been used for controlling high blood pressure and to ensure an orderly transition of patients to alternate therapies. Novartis will make Valturna available until July 20, 2012 to allow physicians to transition patients to another medication. Patients taking Valturna should not stop their high blood pressure treatment without consulting their prescribing healthcare provider.

If you are a patient on Valturna®, we encourage you to discuss this information with your prescribing healthcare provider at your next (non-urgent) visit, prior to July 20, 2012, or to make an appointment before this time, to determine the appropriate alternate medication for you.

Effective February 24, 2012

This recall was initiated because of a packaging error, where select blisters were rotated 180 degrees within the card, reversing the weekly tablet orientation and making the lot number and expiry date visible only on the outer pouch. Any blister for which the lot number and expiry date is not visible is subject to recall.

On January 31, 2012, Pfizer Inc. initiated a voluntary recall of 14 lots of Lo/Ovral®-28 (norgestrel/ethinyl estradiol) Tablets, NDC 24090-801-84, and 14 Lots of Norgestrel and Ethinyl Estradiol Tablets (generic) because some blister packs may contain an inexact count of inert or active ingredient tablets and the tablets may be out of sequence. Click here for more information.

Effective September 1, 2011, the HealthSpring formulary (list of covered drugs) will be changing. Every month, the Preferred Drug List (formulary) is updated. Medications on the preferred drug list include both generic and brand-name drugs.

Recently the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a public health advisory alerting patients, caregivers, and health care professionals that single-ingredient oral colchicine products that have not been evaluated by the FDA would be withdrawn from the market. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recalled these drugs for the following reason(s): Unapproved single-ingredient oral colchicine products have never been evaluated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to ensure they are safe and effective.

Effective January 1, 2011, the HealthSpring formulary (list of covered drugs) will be changing. Every month, the Preferred Drug List (formulary) is updated. Medications on the preferred drug list include both generic and brand-name drugs.