SANDOZ OFFERING MELLARIL AND RESTORIL 65-68% REBATES

SANDOZ OFFERING MELLARIL AND RESTORIL 65-68% REBATES as part of a revised volume-discount plan for long-term care pharmacies. The Sandoz Long-Term Care Comprehensive Support Program (CSP) "volume earned rebate" plan offers pharmacists the ability to earn a 65% rebate as an incentive to purchase large orders of Sandoz' branded geriatric products, such as the antipsychotic Mellaril (thioridizine) and the hypnotic Restoril (temazepam), rather than generically available alternatives. The CSP program revises a previous Sandoz Long-Term Care (LTC) volume-discount program. Promotional materials for the CSP program highlight as improvements: a reduction (from $2,000 to $1,000 AWP) in the minimum quarterly purchase requirements of certain Sandoz brands in multisource categories; the availability of smaller package sizes; and the establishment of a "Priority Processing" order processing service. Sandoz products frequently dispensed in long-term care facilities are divided into three categories under the CSP plan. The size of an institution's total rebate is dependent upon the dollar value of the total order and the category mix of the order. There are four tiers of rebates per product category as well as a four-tiered "bonus" category. For example, when quarterly orders exceed $40,000, the rebate for Mellaril and Restoril (which comprise category A) moves from 65% to 66%; when orders exceed $65,001, the rebate is 68%. The largest discounts are available on seven tablet dosages of Mellaril (1000's), five unit dose of Sandopaks of Mellaril, the oral solution concentrate form of the drug, two capsule dosages of Restoril (500's) and two Restoril unit dose packages. In a second group of drugs (category B), the rebate runs from 22% to a maximum of 28% on orders above $65,001. B category drugs include other sizes and dosage forms of Mellaril and Restoril, Hydergine (ergoloid mesylates) for age-related mental conditions, Korvess potassium chloride and Metaprel (metaproterenol), all of which are available in generic form. The smallest discounts come from a third category (C) and range from 12% to 18%. Category C, the largest in CSP, contains some drugs that are still on-patent. Included are several dosage forms of Hydergine (oral 100's, sublingual 100's, LC 100's), the vasoconstrictor Cafergot Cafergot (ergatamine tartrate), the analgesic combos Fioricet and Fiorinal, the calcium supplement Neo-Calglucon, the antidepressant Pamelor (nortriptyline), Parlodel (bromocriptine) for Parkinson's disease, the antihistamine Tavist (clemastine fumarate), the beta blocker Visken (pindolol) and all other Sandoz drugs with a few notable exceptions. Excluded from the rebate program are Sandimmune, Sandoglobulin, Sandostatin and Clozaril. Customers earn an additional bonus rebate if orders from Categories A and B combined account for more than 55% of an order. Bonus rebates begin at 1% of the total order and top out at 2%. In addition, every dollar in A and B purchases "qualifies you for earned rebates on an equal amount of category C purchases." There is a rebate even if purchases in A and B are lower than for category C. Sandoz is also offering a program for calculating and comparing discount offers. The Profit Predictor profit maximizing analysis compares each Sandoz order to one "purchased generically (plus our proprietary products at full price)," CSP promotional materials explain. The Profit Predictor automatically "defaults" HCFA reimbursement guidelines, state reimbursement levels for namebrand products, lowest available published price for generics and the prime interest rate. As part of the LTC Rebate Program, Sandoz is offering Priority Processing, which can expedite order processing and issue rebate checks "200% faster," Sandoz says. The LTC Rebate Program also incorporates a PERC reward club for "frequent buyers." PERC members accrue points based on order size and the nature of the products purchased. The points are redeemable in American Society of Consultant Pharmacists' education and management skill programs.