Arizona Latin-American Medical Association Offering New Discount Card to Uninsured Residents

The Arizona Latin-American Medical Association in July began offering uninsured residents a card that provides discounts on doctor visits, lab tests, hospital stays and prescription drugs, the Arizona Republic reports. The cards, which cost $25 and cover an entire family regardless of the number of members, offer a 25% discount on doctors' visits, lab tests and prescriptions, and a discount up to 70% on services such as MRIs. Hospitals charge card holders the same rate they assess Medicare beneficiaries, about a 50% discount off the full cost of services. Doctors and organizations that sell the cards receive $10 of the $25 cost. The remaining $15 goes in an ALAMA pool to cover administrative costs, and eventually will be used to fund health fairs. The program is currently funded with a $68,500 grant from the St. Luke's Health Initiative. To date, 300 cards have been sold, and ALAMA expects future demand will be "huge," particularly among undocumented immigrants. Arizona has the second highest number of uninsured residents nationwide. According to a CDC survey done last year, nearly one-third of the state's 1.3 million Hispanic residents said that they could not afford doctors' visits because they lacked health insurance. The projected size of the organization has led several hospitals and pharmacies to participate in the program. Richard Perry, a spokesperson for United Drugs, a 1,250-member Phoenix-based pharmacy cooperative, said the increased volume will make up for the money lost to discounts, while St. Luke's Hospital and Medical Center signed on to attract more Hispanic patients (Snyder, Arizona Republic, 8/31). For further information on state health policy in Arizona, visit State Health Facts Online.