May 4, 2002 CareWorks announces medical card rollout for June 2002.

(DUBLIN, OH) -- The Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation (BWC) recently announced that effective July 1, 2002, ACS State Healthcare will begin managing the Health Partnership Program's (HPP's) pharmacy benefits program, replacing the current vendor, Express Scripts, Inc. (also known as RxNet).

This change in vendor has caused CareWorks to delay the formal release of our new plastic medical cards until June 2002.

Pharmacy benefits for Ohio’s Health Partnership Program (HPP) are provided by a single BWC-approved vendor. Since HPP began in 1997, RxNet has been BWC’s selected vendor. Last year, BWC put the pharmacy benefits contract up for bid. As a result of this bid process, BWC has selected ACS, Inc. as the new Pharmacy Benefits Manager (PBM), effective July 2, 2002.

With this change comes a new phone number for Ohio’s injured workers. In June, BWC will implement a new phone number, 1-800-OHIOBWC, Option 5, for all pharmacy benefits inquiries. This number will ring at RxNet until July 1, 2002, and will begin ringing at ACS, Inc. effective July 2, 2002.

The sample plastic medical card below has an updated design and offers a more durable plastic surface. CareWorks is pleased to provide its more than 57,000 Ohio employer customers with the highest quality medical management services and most value-added services.