Is My Medication Covered?

As a member of CHRISTUS Health Plan Generations or Generations Plus you have prescription drug coverage for Medicare Part D in addition to medical and hospital benefits.

To see if CHRISTUS Health Plan covers a prescription drug, please call member services at 1-844-282-3026. To keep costs low for members and reduce medication errors, we use utilization management practices and drug utilization reviews. Read more about these practices below.

 

Generations/Generations Plus Formulary

Comprehensive/Premier Performance Formulary

What is utilization management?

Utilization management is a practice where some medical services and drugs are evaluated for need before they can be used. This means that for certain prescription drugs, special rules restrict how and when the plan covers them. A team of doctors and pharmacists developed these rules to help members use drugs effectively and keep coverage affordable. Examples of utilization management include:

Prior Authorization: We may require you to get approval from us before you fill certain prescriptions. If you don’t get approval, we may not provide coverage for the drug.

 

Quantity Limits: We may limit or only cover a certain amount of a drug per prescription or for a period of time.

Step Therapy:  In some cases, members may need to try one drug to treat their condition before we will provide coverage for another drug. 

Generic Substitution: When a generic version of a drug is available, our pharmacies will automatically give members that version unless your doctor has told us that you must take the brand name drug.

 

You can find out if your drug is subject to these additional requirements or limits by looking in our formulary. If your drug does have additional restrictions or limits, you can ask us to make an exception to our coverage rules.

What is a drug utilization review?

During a drug utilization review, we check your prescriptions and look for problems like:

  • Possible medication errors
  • Duplicate drugs that are unnecessary
  • Drugs that are inappropriate because of your age or gender
  • Possible harmful interactions between drugs you are taking
  • Drug allergies or dosage errors

These reviews are especially important if you have multiple doctors who prescribe medications. We conduct reviews each time you fill a prescription and on a regular basis. If we see a problem during our review, we will work with your doctor to correct it.

Last Updated: 08/04/2023