PROVIDENCE and INDIANAPOLIS – Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island members saved $260,000 in copayments through a WellPoint NextRx pilot program that encouraged the use of over-the-counter generic drugs.

The OTC Options Program offered BCBSRI members who take prescription drugs for allergies and other common ailments the option of receiving OTC medications for one year at no charge.

“The program took the pinch out of allergy season by helping offset the out-of-pocket costs for members who typically fill a prescription-strength medication such as Allegra,” WellPoint said. Instead, such patients could try the OTC allergy drug Loratidine.

“This relationship underscores our commitment to providing our members with access to more affordable health care,” BCBSRI President and CEO James E. Purcell said in a statement today. “Generic products may look a little different or have a different name, but the main difference is that they cost a lot less.”

More than 4,600 BCBSRI members took part in the program over the course of the year-long pilot, the companies said. As a result of its success, “BSBSRI is working with NextRx to identify other opportunities to introduce members to cost-saving over-the-counter medications,” for conditions such as acne, stomach acid and eye allergies.

WellPoint NextRx is the pharmacy benefits management division of health benefits company WellPoint Inc.

It “is consistently identifying new programs that offer access to quality medications that are more affordable,” Renwyck Elder, president of NextRx, said in a statement today. “Because of our health-plan heritage, NextRx is able to work with our affiliated and unaffiliated health plans to review medical data with pharmacy data, to then build programs that can help members with health care costs and improve their health.”

Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island, founded in 1939 as the Hospital Service Corporation of Rhode Island, is a nonprofit health insurance company insuring more than 670,000 individuals statewide. It is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. Additional information is available at www.bcbsri.com.

WellPoint Inc. – the nation’s largest health benefits company in terms of medical membership, and the parent of pharmacy benefits manager (PBM) WellPoint NextRx – is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. To learn more, visit www.wellpoint.com.