More supermarkets are getting into the drug counseling business and are expecting it to add significant dollars to their pharmacy bottom lines.

Medication Therapy Management — known widely as ‘MTM’ — came to prominence as a reimbursed service of the Medicare prescription drug benefit, which became effective Jan. 1, 2006. Now MTM services are quickly spreading beyond Medicare to other types of medical coverage, attracting the interest of commercial health insurance companies, employer groups, prescription benefit managers and even individual patients.

Some retailers report that these other payers now represent a bigger part of their fledgling MTM service than Medicare.

“We are working with payers like Community MTM Services and others to develop for-fee MTM services in our stores,” said Donald Clark, vice president of pharmacy operations, K-VA-T Food Stores, Abingdon, Va.

With MTM, patients with multiple conditions or medications are referred to pharmacies for counseling sessions, and then the pharmacy is paid for its time. Retailers report that the benefits of MTM include heightened customer loyalty to their pharmacies, greater job satisfaction among pharmacists and potentially increased revenue, although a financial investment in the program in its early stages is necessary.

Because it was instituted by Medicare Part D, many in the industry still regard MTM as primarily a Medicare offering, but retailers and other experts told SN it has the potential to become much bigger. It won't be the first time that Medicare has brought about changes in other medical sectors.

“This is a case where a Medicare-driven initiative can show that it can ultimately lower costs,” Clark said. “This will expand, and there will be more opportunities available.”

“Where Medicare goes, so goes everyone else,” said Jaime Hendrickson, manager, MTM services, Supervalu Pharmacies, Franklin Park, Ill., during a session at the recent Food Marketing Institute Pharmacy Conference in Chicago, where many retailers were interviewed for this story.

Supervalu's MTM program, which is expanding rapidly, includes not only Medicare and Medicaid patients, but also those covered by insurance companies such as Humana, Louisville, Ky., Hendrickson said. Supervalu began last year with eight specialists covering about 90 Chicago-area stores, but has since expanded that number to 25 specially trained pharmacists covering 200 stores, and the chain expects to have 60 specialists covering 500 stores by September, she said.