Express Scripts Reviews

I contacted Express the other day and the rep told me that Novartis no longer made this drug. When I asked for a supv, he told me they make it but they were out and the drug was on backorder until Jan 10. Yesterday, I received an email from Express asking me to have my dr. write a prescription for a 31 day supply of another immunosuppressant drug as they had no timeframe for the ** to be supplied. This morning, I called Novartis Patient Assistant, spoke to a gal named Amber and she told me that the supply was available to any provider. I passed this along to Express and am waiting for a reply. I have 22 days left until I run out of my immunosuppressant which I take for rejection.

I have been standing at our doctor's office and watched them fax the prescriptions while I am on the phone with Express Scripts and they have blatantly lied to me and told me that they don't have them. They change medications on a daily basis as to whether they require mail order or not. They replace the ordered medication with whatever they feel is necessary even though a doctor has ordered a specific medication. They have sent medication to the wrong address even though the telephone number and address are confirmed every time that you call their office. And just try to get in touch with George Paz (the "big guy" of Express Scripts)... I'm fairly certain that the man does not exist. This is a big company that doesn't care one bit about their patients... They are all about the all mighty dollar. Awful, awful, awful...

Aug 2010, my wife's doctor wrote a prescription for ** nasal spray. Medco substituted ** nasal spray. She was unable to use it due to the powerful floral scent. We contacted Medco several times but it took until Oct 2010 to get them to send the ** that she needed. She told Medco and the doctor to put a note in her file stating that she did not want any substations without informing her. Things went smoothly until Jun. 2012 when Medco again substituted ** nasal spray for the **. At this time, Medco said that they called my doctor and he approved it. Well I have doubts about that because after the first substitution, I had them put a notice in my medical records not to substitute anything for ** I told Medco also. It took until Aug. 2012 to get a new supply of **.

Again, things went OK until July 2013 when Medco/Express Script substituted ** nasal spray for **. I gave it a try because these Rx are costing a lot of money. We paid $ 362.88 for 3 ** that I can not use and can not return them. (the ** cost $ 134.07 for 2) But as before I can not tolerate this ** nasal spray. We have trashed 4 bottles of ** and 3 bottles of **. All paid for. She went to see her Dr. and he said they still have the notice in her medical records about NO substitution. He gave her new Rx and Express Scripts has sent the **. Now Express Scripts has sent us a letter stating that ** will no longer be covered. They also say the same about **, another medication that she needs. What can I do to resolve my problem?

This month January I set up shipment and one of the 4 HIV medications were in the box. It is by design that these cocktail drugs are only effective if taken together. Out of medication they send me to a local Pharmacy. I spent 3 and a half hours there yesterday and they were able to force one more medication thru the system. Now I have 2 of 4 meds. I went home. I spent an additional 2 hours on the phone. I was given a help desk Pharmacy phone number and was promised an override code that would work. Saturday am at Pharmacy. Code does NOT work. Called again, me on one phone and the local pharmacy on another line. Local Pharmacy closes at 1 pm. They were supposed to call with another code or authorization so I could get my meds. THEY DID NOT call.

Expires Script should be held liable for helping to spread the HIV virus. I am currently undetectable which means the Likelihood of spreading the virus is very low even if I have unprotected sex. Missing medication could cause me to carry virus which basically means I will be more likely to spread the virus to you or a loved love. Nice going Express Script. NOW WHAT!!!!!!!

Long story short, after 5 telephone calls over 3 hours in the parking lot of my pharmacy and being told FOUR DIFFERENT STORIES about the problem, I FINALLY involved my doctor on an emergency basis and he called them personally to resolve the issue - all they needed was a "prior authorization". They would not budge, were very rude, hung up on me twice and were more efficient treating their own policy manual than they were at customer service in an emergency situation. People on pain meds cannot stop them suddenly due to life threatening withdrawals that start after 24 hours.

I had been without my meds for 20 hours. They told me it would take at least three days even after I told them of my situation. AVOID THESE PEOPLE AT ALL COSTS!! They are more concerned with their company profits and their own policies than doing what you pay them for and that is covering prescription medications.

I called in my refill (actually they called me and I called them back). The refill was supposed to be shipped for delivery on December 31st. No problem. There is no signature required. The Express Script website shows it was shipped via UPS and gives a tracking number. Well - it's not a UPS tracking number. I received a note from FEDEX saying they left the package at the apartment office. However - the apartment office has been closed and they do not have it.

Today is January 2nd. No medication and Accredo has no idea who shipped it right?? I have made three phone calls to them today. Each time I am on hold for over 20 minutes - the most recent phone call I am now still on - I've been on for 46 minutes. It is ridiculous. They are the worst company I have dealt with. Humira is supposed to be refrigerated. It has now been with FEDEX since the 30th at 6:30 (and just in case you don't know FEDEX does not refrigerate). I have spoken with 5 different Customer Service (I use the term VERY loosely) Reps, a Supervisor and now a Pharmacist so the Pharmacist can tell me the medicine may or may not be good. THREE MONTHS WORTH TO THE TUNE OF $7,600. I am so sick of these people. And they do not give a crap.

I also asked for a manager to call me. No call but rather a response that didn't even bother to address the issue...they wanted me to provide proof I paid my balance?!? My reply to this was to point out that they're refusing to supply proof of debt and are withholding medication that prevents life-endangering episodes. I also pointed out they refused to escalate my complaint to the manager level as I requested. I've received no response to this. I should point out that I had a knock-down drag-out with them over the phone in September regarding the same medication. That issue arose because I didn't receive the meds. It took over an hour and two managers to resolve that.

I couldn't find anywhere on the Expressscript.com website a mission or commitment to provide excellent customer service. I guess when you're the "largest pharmacy benefit management organization in the United States", providing excellent customer service doesn't have to be a priority. On the other hand, if they stated it was, it would just be another promise that Express Script can't keep!

So I got my card and said it didn't expired until 2016. She said yes I have that card. But your other card is expired. Are these people for real? Yesterday, Dec. 28, my husband calls to tell me my meds came in. Guess what they freaking sent. The generic brand. I called to see how I could sent it back. I can't they said. I'm stuck paying for it. So now I'm done. I'll pay the extra money and go to Rite Aid or Walgreens.

The 5 medications I take have been my saving grace and this company has done all it can to see that I don't get them on time or when promised it turns into more lies. God above knows this and in the end I'll get mine, they'll get theirs. I'm switching gears like some of may have already done and seeking legal advice from here on out. AND no that doesn't mean I quit to let this company win or to further jeopardize well being.

I am now going on three weeks without getting my script. Thankfully my doctor called in an additional 2 week supply until I get my mail order. Oh wait, new email... "we cannot fill your prescription... and we have mailed a letter to your address on file" - REALLY! Fed up with this company. I get lied to by the phone reps and incompetence seems to be rampant within the organization. I will gladly pay more each month at my local pharmacy rather than "reward" a substandard company with my business. Unfortunately not everyone can make that choice and I am sorry for you. My condition is not life threatening; however I pray this company does not screw with people that have diabetes, RA, heart conditions or any other potentially debilitating or life threatening illnesses! Express Scripts should be ashamed!

Today I received a mysterious package (no brand label on outside) which, upon opening, contained copious quantities of medication that I had never ordered, nor authorized shipment thereof:

90 caps of med#3

I called Express Scripts to ask why this shipment had been sent to me unauthorized. They stated that whenever they receive a new prescription they automatically send out the first 90 day supply. I inquired as to whether there was no protocol for patient notification, and they acknowledged (after much runaround) that they are supposed to call the patient upon (a) receipt of the prescription, and again (b) when the prescription ships. They admitted that - upon review of my records - those calls had never been made. I advised that I would be willing to pay for those prescriptions that did not expire before I needed them (med #3), and that since med#1 was supposed to be in 60ml bottles, I would be happy to pay for that as well, so long as they sent out 3 more 30ml bottles, or switched the current 3 30ml bottles out for 3 60ml bottles, as requested. As for the med#2, I could not use that as the expiration date fell well before I would ever need a refill.

Express Scripts supervisor Ethel began by threatening me that they would send my account to a collections agency if I did not pay them. I politely advised that I had never ordered nor authorized shipment of this medication, and was only calling out of courtesy to see if we could work together a way to salvage the error on their part. She admitted that they had made an error and, after putting me on hold for a while, came back on the line to offer me a credit of $65, in acknowledgment of their error. Since the bill was for $152, this did not help.

Why would I pay nearly $100 for medication I never ordered, and would not be able to use? I tried one last time to offer them the option of either taking back the whole order and calling it quits, or working out how to salvage the order so med#1 was properly filled (60ml instead of 30ml) so I could pay for it accordingly, med#2 was returned, and med#3 I would pay for happily. Ethel refused, and that was the end of it. Express Scripts obviously believes that sending unsolicited shipments of medications around the US, accompanied by large invoices will intimidate patients in to paying up. Not me. I will work with anyone who is willing to behave in an ethical fashion. This has not been my experience with Express Scripts, unfortunately. I am now forced to contact my attorney, my health plan, and my Union. Not a fun way to end the year.

We have had to purchase out of pocket full price at a local pharmacy to get temporary supply for five days. Now on 12/23/13, I call Express and they say they are due to ship on 12/24/13 because they are waiting for the Dr. to approve a refill that was not even ordered with this order. Talked to supervisor on 12/23/13 and she told me that they would not ship that one they were waiting for and expedite, we should receive on 12/26 or 12/27. I don't know if this will happen either. I'm so frustrated with this poor service. it's only been this year when they took over Medco mail order. Patiently awaiting a response on this matter.

It is now 22 days later and I still don't have my medication which I'm in dire need of. I now have to have an emergency prescription filled by my doctor because of this pathetic monopolistic thug organization. When I called last week, I was told it would arrive last week. When I call today, the automated system was again updated to tell me it would arrive today. I suppose that they must all be Democrats and they define 'today' differently than intelligent people. If you use these **, make sure that you have at least a 30-day supply on hand in order to compensate for their lack of concern for you.

Customer service supervisor says that wasn't approval for replacement so he has to bring another pharmacist (Wendy) on and she agrees I should not take but says its patient error cause I should have brought it in.... How did I know it was there? CVS texts me to pick up but mail order doesn't alert that they shipped? Finally got a good support (Jason) cause other support (didn't catch name) hung up on me. Jason helped me get it reshipped for a delivery date I set. Thank you Jason! I would love to go back to CVS but my insurance requires the third world service from express scripts, why do I pay so much for insurance. Maybe Obama care won't require you to use this shoddy express scripts mail order but I probably don't qualify. How do I get around express scripts mail order. This sucks!

It seems a company who provides this kind of service should take a certain amount of responsibility for addressing prescription issues in a timely fashion.

Prescriptions that are unavailable are just put on indefinite hold until we call and eventually find out the problem is the medication is not available. But no letter has ever told us that is the reason the medication is not being sent. Not a helpful way of handling things. The latest letter was due to the fact that the medication is not covered except for the primary card holder. That is not Express Scripts' fault, but sending a vague letter with no useful information is not helpful. I only talk to supervisors now because the front line people do not seem to know what they are doing except with the most basic issues and even then not so much.

In my 40 years of dealing with prescription plans, this is the worst company by far that I have been forced to deal with. I have told them of this website and suggested they read some of the concerns, because if 600 people have taken time to review and over 400 have rated the company, and the rating is one star, there is obviously a serious problem. Medications are extremely important to people and when a company gets so many things wrong, what might that mean about how accurate is their handling of prescriptions? When Medco was handling our prescriptions, we did not have quite so many issues. When Caremark was handling our prescriptions, we very seldom had any problems.

I truly hope that someone who cares at the corporate level will read these posts and make an attempt to address training, product information, and general customer service. Where 600 are disgruntled enough to write, there are undoubtedly thousands who don't bother. Dawn was the first person who actually listened and made every attempt to find out the source of our problems. It took 36 minutes, but in this case it was worth. Other calls have taken as long or longer and nothing seemed to have changed or gotten better.

I was on ** for depression. One day out of the blue I went to the pharmacy and had to pay a much larger amount for it. I was forced to change and I will swear in court I haven't felt as well since. This was four plus years ago. Same story for my cholesterol. My levels from ** to generic ** have raised. I have numerous risk factors - Type One diabetes for 50 years, kidney transplant twelve years ago, high blood pressure and numerous other maladies.

Now they are messing with my insulin! This is the absolute lowest any company can get. I had been taking ** and ** since my transplant in 2002. Along came the flex pens that were so easy to use and Express Scripts paid for them. Then Express decided ** was too expensive, no matter whether it worked better or not. So I was forced to change to ** but it was still with the flex pen. Then the ** pens were no longer covered so I switched to **. I had the worst blood glucose levels I have had since 1981 when I had a death in the family. So on my own I switched back to ** with syringes as per my doctor.

Today, December 14, I get a letter. I am being forced to change from the Novolog flex pens back to **! I'm sick of millionaire companies hiring so called doctors and pharmacists to tell me and my doctor what drug is best for us! This is especially true after being on a covered drug for years and then not wanting to cover it any longer! This has caused stress, extra doctor visits and problems in school for my child plus stress, extra doctor visits and God knows what it has caused my body due to glucose and cholesterol fluctuations! I have had it!

P.S. doubt an attorney will have a foot to stand on, but if you think otherwise one can contact me.

Fast forward a month. They revamped the website interface and removed the button to stop or start auto fill. So I get an $80 Rx for Rx 2 that I am tapering off on due to side effects original prescribing doctor never told me about. And THAT took 11 days to arrive from the order being started. They will not even START the refill process till 90 days after being "filled" which ends up being at least 10 days earlier than you actually get the Rx. So as a matter of routine, I will be out of my maintenance meds for several days every single time. I suppose I can be grateful that none of my meds are for life-threatening conditions, but neither are they ones that are good to abruptly stop and start again.

I filed a complaint online about their new web interface and got a message 2 days later that they were alerting the web programming team, who then "secure messaged" me that maybe 5-7 days from now, they'd get back to me. Meanwhile, now the site is down with no time frame. Even that they can't get right--only part of the message is visible.

So my experience is much the same as the other 600 folks. But I decided to find out from my employer's HR department who in the state hierarchy has the authority for contracting with a Prescription Management company, and I will now be forwarding the link to this thread, my own experience, and any other info I can muster so that the weight of the Virginia Dept of Human Resource Management might be exerted. Because without group action, we are all screwed.

It is obvious to me, reading all this, that ES will do anything and everything to maximize their bottom line, including defying doctor's clinical judgments. I wish there was some way to have some national news organization do an expos. Maybe some folks who have experienced a medical crisis should reach out to CNN or one of the broadcast networks medical reporters. I also will be switching to retail pharmacy for the next set of prescriptions. I can't deal with the constant anxiety of when if ever my meds will actually arrive. It's like the meme Just One Job. They have ONE job, mailing medications, and they can't get that right.

If this was a one time hassle, I would not be writing this. This has been a systemic problem. I am not sure if it is incompetence, deliberate under staffing (and under training) to keep cost down or that I have just been VERY unlucky, but I would avoid these bad actors at all cost. The consequence of the screw ups have been delays in getting my medication. The first night I did without and ended up with 3 hours sleep. I then paid for a prescription myself out of pocket and took a financial hit. If you have a choice, avoid these clowns at all cost.

A week later I received a letter from Express Scripts that my prescription was canceled on behalf of a request from my doctor. After all we went through, this was not the case. It took hours of phone calls, more incompetence and laziness to finally reach a supervisor who would help. My doctor had to submit a new prescription and we had to go through the re-authorization process, again! Express Scripts reassured me that the agent who blatantly lied would be dealt with, but because it was a personnel matter, that would not tell me how.

Recently, on September 25, I placed an order for a refill of a different name brand medication. This original prescription was submitted in March 2013. My refill went through fine in June, so I didn't expect any problems in September. I was shocked when, in late November I received a generic substitute. This is not even a generic for my medication, but a generic for a substitute medication. There is no generic for the one I am receiving. Once again, Express Scripts played the blame game and after five hours of stressful, tearful phone calls, I finally got to the bottom of what happened. Supposedly my prescription had a "plan limitation," based on the quantity. They saw this as an opportunity to "reach out" to my doctor for authorization for the name brand. On the form they asked, "If name brand is not authorized by the insurance, is a generic substitute acceptable?" My doctor responded yes.

First, this "plan limitation" is an Express Scripts issue (more of a scam). Since they shipped the quantity in generic form, there clearly was no quantity issue. It did not matter whether or not the quantity came in name brand or generic. Additionally, I contacted my insurance and they stated there was never any problem with the prescription and they never had any hold, nor any type of problem with the prescription. It was an active prescription and should have been refilled accordingly. Secondly, my doctor said yes to the generic substitute "IF" the insurance company rejected the name brand. The insurance company did not reject the name brand, therefore, the name brand should have been sent.

On December 2 a supervisor said it was as simple as stating that I needed the name brand and all would be good again. This after hours of phone calls with incompetent agents and other lazy supervisors. It took speaking with Blue Cross and being transferred to this supervisor to get one willing to help. He said would process the name brand it should be ready to ship in 3-5 days.

I called today (December 12) to check on the status with this manager and the agent could not dial the extension but she said, "Let me transfer you to a different manager so your problem can be handled once and for all." I never told her about my problem. This new manager told me my prescription was canceled on December 5!! She said she would get to the bottom of it and call me back in an hour. Surprise, no call back. Hours later another manager said she couldn't help, but would leave my number with a "research team" and they will call me back. I wouldn't accept that and yet called back again and spoke with a different manager who said my prescription is set to ship on December 19. My head is spinning.

Basically, if you require name brand, expect this company to do something underhanded and unethical to your prescription. I fully believe they have some kickback program with the generic companies and it is our health they are willing to compromise in order to earn their profits.

This is total BS that we can't even get our own medications when my husband pays for us to have this rotten insurance. The ex knows we can't get anything as long as she owes and she thinks its funny. So now we have NO coverage. This last straw was I called to get my daughter's BC shot and they told me 2 weeks earlier it would be sent out and to us in a few days. It never came, first the address was for it to go to the ex.....then they said we can't have it because the ex owes $375 and if WE pay it we can have our script, which mind you is STINKIN' FREE!!!!! But because she owes we can't have it. This same med costs me $67 at the pharmacy. I will be filing something against this company, they can't keep household straight, and violate HIPPA at every turn. I have seriously reached my last straw!

How did I end my relationship with Express Scripts? When I made payment, I used a cashier's check and wrote on the back "full and final payment per invoice..." I then went to the USPO and mailed my check to Express Scripts - CERTIFIED, RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED. I kept a copy of the check, etc. that I put in the envelope (including a copy of the envelope and invoice). Thus, I have proof of payment and mailing - Let's see if Express Scripts does the right thing and stops harassing me... Not only is Express Scripts inept but they are scammers. BEWARE!!!!!!!

After speaking with a manager, I finally got a rush put on the order and received the order in 3 days. The manager then told me that I could refill my other two meds while we were on the phone and that I should receive them shortly. 12 days later, I received 1 of the prescriptions without a call about the other. I called them to ask where it was and was told that it needed a pre-authorization because I switched from 1 Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) plan to another. They said they got that but still couldn't fulfill the prescription even though I still had a refill left because the prescription was too close to expiring. What? The prescription I asked to be refilled 2 weeks ago?

After questioning this answer, I was then told that I needed a new prescription because I had to get a new pre-authorization. So why didn't they get that when they asked the doctor for a new pre-authorization instead of not telling me or my doctor? I was then told to call my doctor, get a new prescription sent to them (another phone call), ask for a temporary script to be sent to CVS (additional cost and inconvenience) and then to call them back in a few days to request a rush on the order (another phone call) because they couldn't attach one now and that I should receive the order in 10-14 days. So again, delivery time is consistently over a month. How can a company that uses convenience and cost savings as differentiators from local pharmacies be so bad at the very things that are at the root of their value proposition?

In summary, Express Scripts is not convenient, displays very poor communication with customers, the customer service reps don't seem to understand the importance of the medication they are refilling and the different departments of Express Scripts (refill, shipping, AP) don't communicate causing delays and extra work for the consumer.

- Express Scripts' website (when I was able to access it, their server has been down the last several time I tried) has provided me different information than what I am told when I speak with member services.

- They have not always notified me when they have not been able to fill a prescription for any reason. Sometimes they have though, so clearly it is not simply their policy not to inform customers when there's a problem.

- They blame my doctor. I've been with the same doctor who has also had the same physician's assistant for years and through many different insurance companies. The medication I am on is restricted so I am used to having to go through prior authorization hurdles each time. I've never had any problems with any other insurance companies. No one other than Express scripts (E.S.) has ever told me they have not been able to contact my doctor OR that my doctor has not sent them whatever paperwork they have requested and E.S. member services people have told me this repeatedly.

- I am given different and conflicting information when I call member services.

- One representative told me that yes, they had received all of the prior authorizations they needed but no, they hadn't filled the prescription because they couldn't fill it until I asked them too... and no, it is not part of their process to notify members when the authorizations have gone through so that we know when to request that our prescription get filled. That made so little sense to me that I repeated what the representative had said just to be sure I understood that correctly. I told them to yes, fill my script asap. I was told it would be 10 days.

10 days later, I call back asking where my medications are. The person I spoke to that time said the script had never been filled because they were still waiting on a second authorization from my doctor (for quantity limit). I then called my dr's office. E.S. had never told them about needing a second authorization and my doctor's office had to call E.S. to have them send the special form for the quantity limit authorization. It is now over a month later from when my dr's office first sent them my prescription. I have not received my medications and do not know what the status is. I cannot afford this medication without insurance. I am paying a high premium for my health insurance already. My doctor's office is understandably frustrated and irritated as well.

I feel utterly frustrated. I need my medication to stay awake. Without it, I cannot drive or work. I have take a second, less expensive medication for narcolepsy as well, although only a very small amount because higher doses give me anxiety and eventually panic attacks if taken long enough at a higher dose. Unfortunately, that is the only medication I have had available for the past couple of weeks and have had to take about 2 1/2 times my normal dosage in order to compensate for the second, primary medication that E.S. still has not filled.

They blame errors on your doctor and say your doctor won't respond to them. Dr. sent hormone therapy script to them but I just waited and nothing happened. Called them numerous times but they gave me a different reason each time it didn't show up. Dr. sent another prescription because I needed blood test to see how dosage was working but ran out before blood test. Called again and after talking to 3 people was told I needed "another" prior authorization, SURPRISE!! Didn't you know.... NO, DIDN'T HAVE A CLUE. Then, the new prescription for hormone treatment disappeared from the system and no one can tell me where it went. Now months later I have to piss the doctor off again to call them for the prior authorization. This prescription is ridiculously expensive, I wonder if that is somehow related to my problem.

This probably doesn't make sense because it just doesn't. Nobody is this incompetent!! I am going to every extreme to expose this company and hopefully save other people (mainly the elderly) frustration and anxiety of dealing with this company... PLEASE DON'T USE THEM... BE FOR WARNED... I have nothing to gain from this complaint, I just feel I can save seniors problems by not patronizing insensitive companies like Express Scripts.

You talk to one rep who tells you they will fix the problem, you wait, then you call in and complain and ask to talk to a supervisor, the supervisor may not have the authority to fix the problem, so you wait some more. Once you get angry, you MIGHT actually get someone who will help you if you are lucky. I think most of the cs reps would like to help you but they don't have the authority or knowledge to do so. ES also will not take drug manufacture coupons, they will tell you to submit them to a retail pharmacy but as I stated before then, it won't go towards our deductible. Once again, they know that and know you have no choice. I would pay higher premiums to not have to deal with this mismanaged company!

I basically told the pharmacist I don't need it to be explained to me, I don't want to be on it and nothing she says is going to change my mind. Basically she said my Doc needs to send them another script! I said well what does it say on the script? She said "**or generic." I said well then why didn't you give me the **? And she replied because it wasn't specified. Um, it says it on the script! I said to her well so basically you gave me what was cheaper for you and she confirmed that they have a contract with **. If this is my first experience with them I can't tell you how it could get any worse. Stuck between he said/she said between the Doc and Express Scripts. Utter BS!

Despite multiple phone calls, some in excess of 30 minutes, faxes back and forth and finally an urgent appeal placed on 11/11/2013 for a review, as of my call placed a few minutes ago (today 11/20/13) Express Scripts have not approved this medication. More worrisome is the fact that Express Scripts hasn't even started to process the urgent appeal yet. Express Scripts policy is to make a decision for an urgent appeal within 72 hours. It has been 9 days now; still no decision.

If you are reading this, you should know that Express Scripts appear to have some very disturbing internal process control problems. There are many medications that must not be stopped abruptly. There will be patient harm as a direct result of the internal failings of Express Scripts. I am advising my patient to communicate her experiences in writing to both Express Scripts and her employer who contract with them, in the strongest terms. I believe she should expect much better service. I appreciate that there may be internal difficulties merging two large corporations such as Medco and Express Scripts. However, it must never be allowed to rise to the level of patient harm.

While my patient writes her letters, I will be writing to the Insurance Commissioner for Virginia expressing my outrage at both the cost and danger this company's actions has caused. I will also be raising very serious questions with my representative for Congress Frank Wolf about what legislation might be in the works to protect consumers from this kind of blatant irresponsibility. This is absolutely interference with sound medical judgement. I would encourage a representative from Express Scripts to contact me. I would be happy to relay the details in person. But please, after this much of my personal time invested in my patient, don't have a telephone customer service representative call me. I anticipate this medication will be approved upon review of the FDA product information and algorithm. I would then like to know who I should bill for an hour of my time.

After looking at my paper invoice I see that in fine print it says, "Your next refill is scheduled to ship automatically through Worry-free Fills, our automatic refill service." This certainly was a shock to me considering 3 months ago through all the phone conversations (which was a complete and utter hassle) I made it very known to the phone representative AND supervisor that I did NOT want in Worry-free Refills. I was told that I had been removed from this program. So, what did they do, they sent my first order out and then setup Worry-free Refills after I specifically said I did not want them. I do not want or a need a billing error because they ship before my insurance is ready to pay. I'm only 38 and perfectly capable of ordering refills without help.

I get back on the website today to see that the order I placed yesterday will ship on/after 2/17. There is a button on the page to stop worry free refills, but that button is attached to canceling a pending order. I'm not even going to try that one. I've read so many reviews from other people about their prescriptions and how they've been told by Express Scripts that they do not even have an existing script on file. I'm not willing to take a chance at my whole entire prescription being canceled. I guess I'll ride it out and see what happens. I will be making a copy of the web page as proof, proof that shows the pending order and when it will ship because I will not be stuck paying for their error!

Now that they have the prescriptions they say they will be mailed on November 25, 2013. I called them today and ask them what the hold-up was and they gave me there standard answer for delays, "we have to contact your doctor". I've taken prescriptions to Wal-Mart and they fill them and I'm out of there. Bottom line is Express Scripts should change their name to "Slow as Hell Scripts". While Slow as Hell Scripts may be a little cheaper, you get what you pay for. This is the last time I fill prescriptions with Slow as Hell Scripts. When you have an irregular heart beat that had to be shocked back to normal, prescription medications may be the difference between life and death. Don't put your life in the hands of Slow as Hell Scripts.

I wish I could afford NOT to use them but unfortunately our government/insurance companies say we have to. And if we go to a real pharmacy they charge you an arm and a leg and because you’re insurance plan won't fill more than one month, then you have to do mail in through express scripts. And if you don't then you’re just out of luck. It's their way of sticking it to you. More money in all of their pockets and screw the American people. Express scripts will kill someone one of these days if they haven't already. I'm disgusted with it all.

I don't log onto the website often because I mistakenly trust that the worry-free refills will do what they say they will, and so when I check the website two weeks before my pills run out (a week or so after I am first allowed to refill them), I always see some sort of problem. Whenever I call them, I am always on the phone for hours, and the issue is never resolved. The employees are apathetic, rude, slow, and really have no idea how to do their jobs. When I eventually resolve the processing issues over the phone after yelling at various employees for over an hour, it still takes weeks for me to receive my prescription. It takes at least 3-5 days for the medications to be processed, and AT LEAST 10 days for them to actually get to my mailbox. One of my prescriptions that I just received had 90 pills missing, and now I have to pay full price AGAIN for the third bottle to be processed and shipped even though it was THEIR mistake.

For the past three weeks, I have been trying to get one of my other meds refilled. When I checked the website, I saw that the medication couldn't be processed (and of course I wasn't notified by Express Scripts of this in any way). So I talked to my doctor, who claimed to have responded to the request to refill the prescription that Express Scripts had sent to him, but Express Scripts still insisted that they never received anything. So I had to have them resend the request and have my doctor resubmit it again, which of course took over a week. I once again checked the website, and they said that they couldn't process the medication for another two weeks even though I had run out of the prescription two days ago!

Each month, because my medications are never here on time, I have to have my doctor write a prescription for ONE WEEK AT A TIME for the medications that I do not have because if I go without one of them for a day, I go into severe withdrawal and have many debilitating problems. So I have to take this one week prescription to my local pharmacy, and of course my insurance refuses to pay for it, so I am forced to pay HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS out of pocket for seven pills! And then, because it always takes more than seven days for the prescription from Express Scripts to get to me, I have to pays hundreds of dollars once again for ANOTHER one week prescription. This continues until I finally receive my prescription in the mail, and of course my insurance refuses to reimburse me, even though they are the ones forcing me to use this inept company.

So today, I called Express Scripts to try and get them to switch my processing date because I only have five days left of the hundred-dollar prescription that I got from my local pharmacy. And they refused to do anything about it. I was on the phone for TWO HOURS and was on hold for an hour and a half of it. Each time I was put on hold, it was for AT LEAST twenty minutes at a time, just for her to ask her supervisor a simple question. I was told that because three months ago when I didn't receive the prescription from them on time and I had to use my local pharmacy to get the pills that I needed until I received the pills in the mail, Express Scripts couldn't fill my prescription yet because those pills had counted towards my next (this month's) prescription! And my local pharmacy, whom I had received only 14 pills from three months ago, had submitted to my insurance that I had received a month supply!

So now I have to wait 30 extra days until Express Scripts will process my prescription because of the 14 pills (30 according to my insurance) that I was forced to get because EXPRESS SCRIPTS was ONE MONTH late on getting my prescription to me in the first place! This now means that I am going to be spending AT LEAST $300-400 on the pills that I am going to need for the next thirty days until Express Scripts will even start processing this prescription. I am BEYOND fed up with this company. If you have the choice, DO NOT GET ANYTHING SHIPPED FROM THEM! They are late on their shipments EVERY TIME that I need something filled, I am forced to pay thousands of extra dollars out of pocket every three months on my four prescriptions from my local pharmacy that I need because Express Scripts is late on shipping them to me, and they do NOTHING to help over the phone!

They don't care one bit about their customers or what happens to them when they don't receive their medications on time. Because of that, they don't deserve to have customers. If I could, I would take my business elsewhere (especially just to a local pharmacy where I don't have to wait weeks for a medication to be shipped to me), but unfortunately insurance companies force those who are insured by them to use these worthless mail-in companies. Express Scripts is BY FAR the WORST company that I have ever had to deal with.

I contacted them again to have the invoices corrected and was told that there is no such thing as separate billing account numbers even though an earlier rep confirmed this fact and the fact I am looking at them right in front of me. I went even further to communicate with them, providing a breakdown of the charges payments and account numbers, and to gather this information, I looked up the prescription prices as listed on their website only to discover that I have been overcharged. This company is impossible to deal with and all for a few dollars. All I want is corrected billing and for the payments to be applied to the correct accounts when I send them. I am amazed that after 14 reps, no one can figure this out. Shutting off the ability to order medication is life threatening and overcharging is criminal. If I had a choice for prescription coverage, I certainly would not use Express Scripts.

I think the guy posing as a pharmacist was from India so maybe they use a call center from overseas. Never had any problems with MEDCO, their predecessor, before they merged. Call your insurance plan and tell them to get rid of these clowns. I have open season and I'm looking for plans that are not using Express Scripts for Rx.

Now they sent me a letter in October that they would not longer cover my diabetic meter and supplies. It would have to be switched to a different one. I went into the doctor and brought the letter with and she sent a prescription to them for the new one. I then received a letter telling me that they would not cover it until January. I called and asked them to send test strips for my old meter, but they said that they did not have than prescription - yet they called me and sent me a letter telling me I had to switch????? Then a couple days later I receive in the mail the test strips for the new meter that they won't cover until January and pulled $60.00 out of my account. What good do they do me without a meter???? Did they really think about that???

I called them to ask and the first person I talked to said that they never sent any test strips out. I told him that was not true and he just did not understand. I told him I was holding them in my hand and here was the prescription number and the $60.00 charge. He looked up the number and by the miracles of above he saw it. Now I asked why they sent those and not the ones for the current meter that I have. They could not because they don't have the authorization to do that. But it was ok to send the test strips for the meter that they can't and didn't send me. I didn't think this was rocket science. I said that I needed one or the other - either test strips for my old meter or the new meter that my doctor had just prescribed.

I was then told by a supervisor that I would need to get "PRIOR AUTHORIZATION" in order to receive either of those. What??? Their rules/procedures change depending on who you are talking to. Now I am pulling everything. They will not get a credit card on file and they will not be allowed to do a auto-refill (they couldn't handle it anyway). At least they can't just spend my money whenever they feel like it! I am so frustrated that I actually starting swearing at their supervisor. They lie, and they do not make any logical sense whatsoever! How do we go back to being able to make our own decisions on where and when we can get our prescriptions filled? How do you rate a million minus on the star rating???

Friday November 1: My doctors call in and submit paperwork for new medication that he URGENTLY needs to start taking for his medical condition. Tuesday November 5: I called Accredo to follow up on the order and tell them we need the medicine ASAP. They told me they had all the information they needed to process the request (I asked several times because usually my scripts get delayed for some red-tape excuse). We arranged for the prescription to be delivered on Thursday November 7th. Meanwhile, I arrange for a 1-week sample from my child's doctor to cover the wait.

Thursday November 7: No prescription; I realized this after hours and could not call. Friday November 8: I called and after being on hold for a while, I was told that this was due to an oversight. The pharmacy had been very busy and simply overlooked the order. I remind again that this is an urgent request and we need the medicine ASAP. We again arranged delivery of the prescription for the next day, November 9. Saturday November 9: I followed up to track the prescription and see that it was never shipped. I called Accredo and was told that they did not ship the prescription because it was too soon for a refill. Reminder, this is NOT a refill but a NEW prescription that they NEVER SENT. I am now waiting on hold (at 45 minutes now). I was originally told I would have to wait 3-5 minutes for a supervisor.

I need to know what to do at this point? Who can I complain to that will listen? Again, I can share other stories.... but I've written enough for one day. My son really just needs his medicine.

Well, I bundled up all the prescription receipts, filled out all of the appropriated forms, had the Pharmacist sign where needed on the (Express Scripts) form and mailed it all in. This was back in early August of 2013. A few weeks go by and nothing. So I log into the website and find the claims. Nothing has been done that I can tell, so I call them. After several minutes I finally get patched through to a live person. After several more minutes of giving them all the information and explaining, the person directly tells me it is on hold because the file shows that they are designated as the Primary provider for my wife's prescriptions and that I need to contact my benefits personnel to get it changed before they will proceed. Really? This is just a blow off tactic.

I contacted my HR/Benefits plan person and they were just as shocked as I was. She stated that they do not make any designations and that Express Scripts needs to make the correction, if that is truly the issue. So, another futile call to Express Scripts. Several minutes later, same answer. ES is listed as Primary and that I need to contact my people. I said that I did and they don't make any such designation. I now ask to speak with someone in the Claims department. I am informed that they cannot do that. They will notify claims and have them contact me directly. They say someone will contact me within 72 hours. One week goes by and no call from Claims or anyone else for that matter from Express Scripts. This same scenario happens 3 more times when I try to get an answer as to why they will not pay my claims.

It is now November 2013 and I have progressed to at least (or at least I'm told) being put in contact with one of the operators supervisor. This takes several minutes before I'm actually put in voice contact with said supervisor (I believe that this is another tactic of theirs, let the person stay on hold long enough and they will just go away). Supervisor says she is looking at my file and agrees that a check should have been cut months ago. She will forward this on to Claims and it should take them 5 business days to process. When the check is ready to be mailed, she will call me. I ask her to repeat my phone number to me so that I can make sure she has it correct. I also ask for her contact information and she gives me her "extension" number. She says I can just ask for that extension, but that she will call me in about 5 days. This last phone call took approximately 45 minutes. It happened today, November 4, 2013 at 1:15 pm and ended at 1:57 pm PST.

Each time that I call I am told some sort of excuse and that I cannot speak with claims. The operators I believe are scripted as to what to tell the customer. My belief is that the operators are told to do nothing and get the customer off the line as quickly as possible. You cannot settle any kind of issue with Express Scripts because they will never let you speak with Claims. If you get someone that says they will forward it to claims, don't believe it. You will just be right back to square one and making another aggravating call to the Brick Wall known as Express Scripts' customer service.

Here are just a few occurrences. My prescription was lost. I complained that it had to go through an approval process so why was I sent a letter that stated that a pharmacist will have to evaluate how much I should receive of the cream. The pharmacist has no access to my clinical chart to make an educated evaluation. But the letter acknowledges my prescription, but I am told that there is no prescription. The lovely manager said "Maybe you were the one who forgot to mail the prescription" when I asked her to have someone check because I mailed two prescriptions.

On another occasion I was told that my address had changed so they did not send it. They had been sending prescriptions to the same location for two years. Yet, another time I spoke to another person about an increase in medication so the previous medication was going to run out. I wanted to know what process I should take since I was aware of the many mistakes already. The representative did not understand and then proceeded to give me wrong medication.

The worst mistake was that I was not sent my medication. When I called to complain, the representative said he would send it and he did not. I could not get a manager on the line to complain. Nobody at Medco knows what they are doing and they are not held accountable for their snarky remarks and inaccurate information. I am a pharmacist and I am appalled at what Medco is doing to our profession. Our profession was once rated the highest in honesty. That does not exist any longer.

Last month with the help of benefits I thought we had it worked out, only to start all over this month. They actually gave a $75 credit last month. Now it disappeared, hmm. So it's maybe $50 for 30 days retail?? I'm waiting to confirm this with Walmart. But it's $125 for a 30 day supply mail order because they don't want to sell 90 days supply. What the hell is that about? They say that's the way it is in the contract is but my copy says 90 day mail order is maximum $125. Not a 30 day supply. Maximum on a 30 day supply is $50.

HELLO EXPRESS SCRIPTS YOU ARE GOING TO KILL PEOPLE on limited incomes. Oh, wait I see your stock price is up, on the back of little old ladies.

I am an insulin dependent diabetic and have been on the phone 3 times this week with Express Script and once with my doctor's office in an attempt to get insulin before I run out of it. I finally received an answer this am (October 29th, 2013) that Express Script will be mailing my insulin out NEXT Monday (November 4th, 2013) NOT in time! Express answer? Get a 14-day script. Boy, how I long for the days when I hand delivered my prescription and could actually walk out with my needed Prescriptions. EXPRESS SCRIPTS STINKS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Express Scripts never contacted me directly and denied faxing anything to my doctor (who had no way of knowing without their fax). Needless to say, I am now out of my medication and my physician doesn't want to deal with Express Scripts and cancelled my med refills. I was transferred to 7 people who each gave me a different story and then transferred to a pharmacist who was the rudest person I've ever spoken to. I was told my meds were in same classification, to which I explained that was incorrect and the FDA has them under different classes, different actions/mechanisms, and that they are prescribed for different diagnoses (one of them even has a prior auth that was renewed for another year by Express Scripts), no contraindications for them together. I am disgusted by the treatment I received and being judged by this incompetent and ignorant "pharmacy". They are negligent and malicious and should not be authorized to dispense medications at all! Who is regulating them???

How is this supposed to be saving me $$. I feel like this is such a scam. Making me go to them, but they are charging me higher prices for my meds. When told the customer service rep about this, she just read from her little script that she is supposed to say to mad customers. Made me more upset.

There was no way I would have gotten my meds on time, if ordered through them. They also wanted me to pay $350 to them for my son's medication, that I can get for $12 at the local pharmacy. They are threatening to make me pay a fee of $25. It still will be cheaper than going through Express Scripts, but it's not right!

I contacted Express Scripts and spoke to an employee there that could not help me but only repeated over and over about it being a name brand RX and then hung up on me. All she could tell me was, it is a bill that I owed immediately. The day I called was a few minutes after FedEx delivered the prescriptions. When I saw the bill, I was on the phone calling them right away. I asked if they would take them back and I was advised, "No, they do not take back prescriptions even though it was just delivered and never opened." She did not say if they even billed the insurance for it. My thought is why would this pharmacy send a prescription to me that was not covered by the insurance instead of a generic that obviously had been covered all along. The customer service is very poor and I would not recommend this company to anyone.

I actually feel sorry for the poor people working for this disgrace of a "service". I use this term loosely. There is no service. Seniors are stuck with dealing with this mess. We have no choice. Our insurance company made this deal. They should change their name to "Denied, Pay it Yourself". Is there a group lawsuit against them?

One of the explanations I receive from MEDCO when I finally have to call to inquire why my meds have not arrived often is due to their stating that they are not clear as to my mailing address. I have had the same address for over three years, Medco has this address in their computer system under my name. I run into difficulties every 90 days. The most recent experience is what I shall describe to you. Please note though, this experience is the norm. I sent in my prescription order on September 11, 2013 via USPS overnight express mail signature required. Medco confirmed they received my order on September 13, 2013. As of today, October 4, 2013 I still do not have my order. Over the last 2 and a half days, I have spent more than 3 hours on the phone with customer service reps, level 1 supervisors, level 2 supervisors, and pharmacists, trying to determine why I have not received my meds, will I be receiving my meds, and when I can expect them to be delivered. I have now been without any of my psych meds since September 25th (that was when I ran out).

My first call regarding these medications was made on Wednesday, October 2nd. I am traveling, therefore not in my home state. I made this call because my husband informed me I had received 2 letters from MEDCO while I have been away. These letters stated that my order could not be processed due to the fact they do not have a "valid shipping address". When I placed my order, I checked the box on the order form stating that I wanted the express shipping for all of my Meds. This is an extra $15.00 charge to have my meds expressed shipped. On the bottom portion of my order form, I printed my shipping address. When I order meds agreeing to pay the extra fee for express shipping, all meds are to be shipped to my physical address. Express shipping means that UPS will be delivering my meds.

*One of the problems I have experienced in the past is that I have 2 meds that are classified as C2 and one Med that is classified as C4. If I don't use the express shipping option, my C2 meds must be shipped to my physical address because they have to be signed for, while the rest of my Meds are mailed to my mailing address. I live in a rural area and the post office does not deliver mail to a mail box at my residence, my mailing address is a post office box. If someone tries to mail something to me using my physical address rather than P.O. Box, the United States Post office will return the mail to the sender, since they do not recognize my physical address as my mailing address. Since I knew I needed to receive my meds before I left town, I chose to use express delivery so all of them would arrive before I was to travel.

It is important to note that I have been dealing with the address situation for the whole 3 years I have been using MEDCO and MEDCO has record of both addresses. This past Wednesday, I was told that MEDCO could not process my order because they did not have a valid shipping address. I was also informed that one of my medication prescriptions had expired. I asked which one, and when did it expire. I was told the prescription for NUVIGIL had expired on September 18th. I asked why that made a difference, MEDCO had confirmed they had this prescription in their hands with the others on September 13th, which was before the expiration date of September 18th. I was told that due to the problem concerning the valid shipping address, they could no longer fill the NUVIGIL.

The pharmacist was not allowed to "back track" the order, this rule is part of the "Federal Guidelines". I asked for further explanation, I did not understand why the NUVIGIL could not be sent since it was in MEDCO's possession and processed by the pharmacist before its expiration date and the only issue delaying the whole medication order from being shipped was a "valid Shipping address". I was told the NUVIGIL prescription was now expired, therefore could not be shipped according to the Federal Guidelines. I asked them to tell me exactly what the Federal Guidelines state. MEDCO said they could not do that because "they did not know them." I asked how could we resolve the following issues: Can they expedite my order for the rest of the drugs, and since I am out of the state, could I have them shipped to an address where I am staying, as well as how can we remedy the NUVIGIL situation.

A level one supervisor, Vernan, said that she would review my case with a pharmacist. I was placed on hold for 30 minutes. When she returned, she said that my drugs would be shipped to my address where I am currently staying. I asked when I could expect to receive my order and she said no later than Friday, October 4th. I asked approximately what time could I expect the order to arrive. She said the order was approved and being processed and that it would arrive via UPS. I reminded her that October 4th was a Friday and what should I do if the drugs do not come? She said that I need to call MEDCO if I had not received the order by 3:00 P.M. She assured me that my order was approved, it was being processed, and that she did not anticipate any other issues. She then said if there happened to be any other problems, MEDCO would call me. I verified my cell phone number with her reminding her that I was out of town, not at home in Virginia. I asked that MEDCO call my cell if there were any other problems.

Thursday, October 3rd, 2013. My husband called me around 6:00 P.M. to tell me the answering machine at home had a message from MEDCO regarding a problem with my prescription order. I immediately called MEDCO. This time I spoke to a level one supervisor, Barbara, who stated my order could not be processed due to a problem concerning NUVIGIL, this prescription had expired. I reviewed all that had been discussed and what the resolve was on the day before (Wednesday, October 2nd). She stated my prescription order could not be processed because the NUVIGIL prescription had expired. I asked why the rest of my meds with the exception of the NUVIGIL had not been shipped. She said she could not answer that because she was "not a pharmacist". I asked to speak to a Pharmacist. Barbara said that the pharmacists all had left, they always leave 5:00 P.M. I requested to speak to someone who might be able to help me with my problem. I was placed on hold.

After 30 minutes I was arbitrarily disconnected. I immediately called back, and eventually was directed to another customer service rep., a different Barbara, who then placed me on hold to wait for another supervisor. Finally, a supervisor named Charlotte took my call. She told me that she would request that all of my meds with the exception of the NUVIGIL be expedited and shipped with Saturday morning delivery. Charlotte said that she would have the pharmacist call my doctors in Virginia to request another NUVIGIL prescription and that once MEDCO received a new prescription, it would be processed and shipped. She could not guarantee that I would receive my NUVIGIL by Monday. I asked if someone from MEDCO could please call me on Friday to update me on the NUVIGIL order. She said Crystal, the customer service rep who handles callbacks, would call me by 3:00 P.M. Friday. I verified that MEDCO had my cell phone number, reminding them I could not be reached at home.

Friday, October 4th, 2013 Crystal from MEDCO did not call me by 3:00 P.M. I waited until 5:00, then called MEDCO. I asked to speak to a supervisor, explain the events of the last two days, and asked for the update I was to receive from Crystal. I was passed onto a level 2 supervisor and placed on hold so they could find one. After 30 minutes, I was disconnected once again. I immediately called back and eventually began to speak to Jean, a level 2 supervisor. I asked for an exact explanation of the Federal Guidelines, Jean placed me on hold to find a pharmacist. Once she found a pharmacist, I asked my questions again. Jean remained on the line as I spoke to the pharmacist. I was given a UPS tracking number for my order due to arrive Saturday October 5th, minus the NUVIGIL.

I was told Crystal tried SEVERAL times to call my cell phone and that my cell phone "just rang, and rang, and rang but there was no voice mail and there was no way to leave a message".(I'd kept my cell phone next to me all day and did not receive any calls from MEDCO). Once again I verified that MEDCO had the correct cell phone number. I was told my cell phone number on record was ** to which I said that the area code Medco had listed was incorrect, my area code is 540. Jean said that's what we have, 540. I then asked about the NUVIGIl, and I asked where I could get a copy of the federal guidelines for C4 drugs. I was told that MEDCO has the federal guidelines on their web site but that they are only available to MEDCO employees. I asked where else I might find them and was told they did not know where to direct me. I asked for an exact method I could use so when it is time to place my next prescription order I will do my part.

I asked to be told how to place the order in the future to avoid problems. I never did get an exact answer. I told them I am due to see my doctors in Virginia for a med check on October 23rd, 2013. It is at this time I will be receiving prescriptions for another 90 days. I asked If I could mail them at once when I receive them and would they hold them until it is time to refill again, or if it was too soon to order my refills what should I do. I was told not to send the prescriptions in until sometime in December. The consequences of all of this hoopla....

I have been without my psych meds for 2 plus weeks. I can feel my depression setting in. I have had a few fleeting suicidal thoughts (I do not experience depression to this extreme when I take my medications as the doctor prescribes). I am worn down emotionally, and very, very tired. The NUVIGIL situation has not yet been resolved. My meds are not yet here, hopefully they will arrive today. This is the process I have been through each time I place an order for refills on my meds over the last 3 years. My shipping address has remained the same, my mailing address has remained the same, my meds have remained the same. I do not think it has to be this hard.

Another concern I have, often when I begin this process of problem solving, and when I call simply to speak to a customer service rep to track my order, or to find out where my order is in processing, I cannot understand what the customer service rep is saying due to a thick foreign accent and poor command of the English Language on the part of the customer service rep. I am worried mistakes are being made that further aggravate problem situations. I'm not certain I am being understood when I speak to representatives who do not have a decent command of the English Language. Often I have to ask them to slow down, often I have to ask them to repeat their words.

When asked to overnight mail it because they have wasted so much time, they forget and mail it snail mail and it takes another 7 days to receive. I would rather use my local pharmacy if it were not so expensive. I continue to urge my company to stop using these slugs but apparently it is more cost effective to use an incompetent company that has horrible customer service. At this point the value is not worth the hassle. I will not use them again.

I called Express Scripts several times and explained - and that they could not give me an exception as we were not "eligible" for a one-time exception. I asked for a supervisor and they left me on hold for over 20 minutes. I called back again and was told the same - asked for a supervisor again and still could not get one to get on the phone. The pharmacy then closed and my husband had to go without the medicine he desperately needed.

Express/Medco will NOT call patients or providers when there are ANY issues with getting medications, whether the problem is payment or something else more minor; they send a letter that takes an unacceptable amount of time, which delays patient treatment that much longer. Some patients take medications that are a highly susceptible to resistance and therefore should NEVER miss doses. Express/Medco will also send part of a combination therapy that requires all the medications to be taken at the same time because their pharmacist and techs are poorly educated about the medications they are dispensing. SHAME ON YOU EXPRESS SCRIPTS/MEDCO - YOU ARE DEALING WITH PEOPLES LIVES and couldn't appear to care less. This especially includes the pharmacist.

Also I have to take a Beta Blocker with my name brand now to help lower my blood pressure because the generics I tried did not work - they raised my blood pressure instead of lowering it. Now I have to take meds that sure is saving them money??? What we are all facing is, IT'S ALL ABOUT THE MONEY and if it costs you your life, then so be it. It is so sad that a human life means nothing anymore. The almighty dollar is front and center, and at this point we have no rights when it comes to our medications. They even have power over your doctor and they make your doctor jump through their hoops. I do not understand how they are allowed to have so much power. They do not have the right to play God with our lives, but it is happening. Very disappointed.

Other thing that happened is I can't have generic of a med and have a block put on my account so an error is never made. Shipped me the generic and told me doc wrote it that way, no substitute. I called the doc office to confirm and they faxed me a copy of the script which said brand only! But they argued with me and three calls of being nasty and then they refused to transfer me to a pharmacist to verify the script because they knew they screwed up. Even if my doc made the mistake, the block was on there for safety but didn't register with them. Ugh, complete and total idiots. I want my Caremark back!

Well, I reordered the prescription and lo and behold overcharged again $170.74. So, here I go again. Multiple call backs speaking with supervisors. You never, ever get the same one even if you ask by name. You have to explain the entire issue over and over again. One supervisor stated that my credit could not be issued because I was already given my "courtesy" adjustment. What?? It was your error in the first place!!! One stated that I could get the money back in 18 months!

I called back and spoke with yet another supervisor who reviewed my "case" and she stated I should be given the credit because it was their error and that the money will be credited to my account in 48-72 hours. Shocker. More than 3 days no credit. I call again and they state that it went to their billing department to "review" the case and one supervisor admitted it could take up to 30 days to get my credit. I asked for the billing dept number but they stated they do not have number. What? I finally got my child's meds today. Slow processing, but I have yet to see a credit. Horrible company! Incompetent in every aspect.

I got the bill and called to say that Pay up. If I have a problem, I need to call UPS myself. Being in customer service, I know that in order to place a trace on an order, it needs to come from the shipper as they have the tracking number. I even got a supervisor on the phone that told me they would not issue a credit, the package was delivered according to UPS.

I called UPS myself and they found the tracking number and told me that I had to call ES back and ask them to make an inquiry. I said that they had already refused and UPS called them directly. They kept her on hold for over 3/4 an hour, and she had just gotten a supervisor on the phone. UPS told me that I would now have to work with ES... the investigation could take 8 days. She also let me know that on the POD, it said that it was left at the front door. I live in a security bldg. This means that UPS dumped the package by the mailboxes and it was medicine... anyone could have taken this package. Once again, big corporate America makes its money by trying to screw over customers a hundred bucks at a time.

While trying to find a place to voice my displeasure, I waded through 7 pages on the search engine, but I heard a lot about how their stock price is going up and how they are growing... Well, you no longer have my business and I plan to tell the carpenter's Union Benefit office how difficult they are to work with. I have an appointment to speak with the President, Terry **, next week. Hopefully, they will not grow for too long. I believe that with the merger with MEDCO, they have a monopoly on the market.

The representative transferred the prescriptions over to the correct insurance account and proceeded to tell me that I had to pay the co-pay amount that was left from the OTHER insurance claim that was processed under the WRONG insurance company. I, AGAIN, explained the situation and said that this couldn't be correct, they had to have a way to fix their mistake because it needed to be processed under the CORRECT insurance so that it would go towards my deductible and I could pay for it out of my HSA account. I was told that it wasn't their problem and I would have to "eat" the cost.

I called back the next day to speak to someone else. They informed me that, no, I won't have to eat the cost. They said that it takes a few days for the system to update and then everything, even the billing, would switch over. I was to wait for a new invoice to arrive in the mail and then pay it.

After several weeks I received an invoice. It was for the ORIGINAL amount to be paid to the WRONG insurance. I called in and was informed that I needed to pay that amount FIRST and I would be reimbursed later. So, they took my payment over the phone.

A couple weeks later I called in again to find out when I was going to receive my reimbursement. I was informed that I needed to fill out paperwork in order to get it and the representative that I spoke with couldn't understand why I wasn't told that before. The lady on the phone sent out (can only send this via mail, not fax or email) the paperwork and I had to wait an additional week for the paperwork. Meanwhile, I'm getting bills from the prior health insurance company asking for repayment of almost $800.00 in prescription costs that they paid.

I fill out the paperwork and mail it in after receiving it. I waited a few days and called Express Scripts to make certain that it was received and "in good order". I was informed that I needed to provide a lot more information. I asked them "why would I have to provide this information when it is all in your system because you originally processed it?" They couldn't give me a good answer and told me to resubmit the same paperwork again with additional information (prescription numbers and medication dosage amounts that they have in their system, but was blocked out on the invoices that I sent in with the first set of paperwork!). So, the representative at Express Scripts said she would print off the needed information and mail it to me so that I could resubmit it with the paperwork again?!?!?!

I received the information from Express Scripts and mailed it back in. I waited a few days and called to make certain it was received. Yes, it was received and is in the process of being worked on, it takes 7-10 business days. I waited the 10 business days and finally saw online the claims appear, WITH A DENIAL because they were "duplicate claims".

I called back in to find out what was going on. The representative didn't know. I asked for a supervisor. The supervisor said she could see that I was obviously owed the money, but she also did not know why it was denied and listed as a "duplicate claim". I asked her if there was any way that I could speak to someone in the claims department. I was informed that they don't accept incoming calls, but she could send through a request to have someone call me within 72 business hours.

72 BUSINESS hours later I have received no phone call. I call back into Express Scripts. I ask for a supervisor. I am informed that they don't know why no one has called me. They resubmit the request.

I finally receive a phone call. The Claims representative can see why I'm frustrated and says "yes, you definitely are owed this money. However, because the original claim was processed by Express Scripts and needs to be resubmitted by Express Scripts, this is something that the claims department can't handle. You were given the incorrect paperwork". She mails the correct paperwork that is supposed to go to their appeals department.

I wait over a week to receive the new forms. I fill them out. These forms have a fax number listed on them!! YEAH! So I fax them in. I wait a few days and call to make certain that the forms were received and "in good order". I was told that they were received on 8/16/2013 and are in the process of being reviewed. I was told it takes 7-10 business days for reviews to be completed.

I wait 10 business days and call back in to check on the status. The paperwork is still under review. I ask to speak to a supervisor. The supervisor looks all the notes over, all the paperwork over and says that yes, they see why I am frustrated and Yes, I am owed money. They say they don't know why it's taking so long for this to be reviewed and processed. They submit a manual request that is escalated and send directly to the person working on my "file". He says that they will call me within 72 business hours.

That afternoon I receive a phone call from a woman in claims who is supposedly handling my paperwork. Again, I have to walk through the entire situation. She looks at the paperwork and says that it's missing information. I inform her that no, it's not. I ask her what forms she's looking at. She was looking at the OLD paperwork that was originally sent out to me and was INCORRECT. I informed her that no, there is new paperwork in the system that is correct. She finally finds this and says "I don't know why they sent all this to me, this needs to be looked at by the Appeals Department, not Claims!". She says that she is escalating this and manually sending everything on to the Appeals department. She said that within 48 business hours someone will call me with an update.

No one ever calls.

I call again and ask for a supervisor. The supervisor informs me that they see that the paperwork has went through appeals and was forwarded onto the Member Services department, which is who actually "cuts the check". She says that everything is under review and Member Services will work with Appeals to either approve or deny the claim. However, she says that it appears that it's just been sitting there since 8/16/13 (32 days) and no ones worked on it. She says she's going to escalate this. She says that Yes, even she can see that I am obviously owed money. I inform her (as I have done with every supervisor that I have previously spoken with over the past MONTHS) that I am in collections and this is negatively impacting my credit. I have STERLING credit, and I am not happy about this. I asked her to have someone call me within 72 hours (no later than 9/20/13) or I would seek legal counsel. I said that I want this resolved.

Let's just see whether or not this gets taken care of.

Initial claim date - 4/08/2013. Initial contact by me to Express Scripts 4/09/13. Today's date: 09/17/13

My most recent experience this month: Express Scripts received my refill order for 3 medications for my husband, via online refill of existing prescriptions on their website. I also authorized express shipment as my previous experiences with this company had shown that they cannot ship according to the statements on their site (3 - 5 days). This was on September 2, a holiday, so I cut them some slack.

1 week later, I received a voicemail message from them saying that they needed to speak with me prior to processing the order. I called back, spent 10 minutes on hold, and then spoke with someone that said the amount of the order was over the amount authorized to ship without additional consent. (Order value was over $500, but they could not tell me how much the order total would be.) I gave my consent and asked when the order would be shipped, they said it would be processed "immediately".

4 days after that, I received an automated voicemail message stating that my order was delayed and they thanked me for my patience. There were no instructions to call back, nor any indication that they required additional information; just saying the order was delayed.

Another 2 days, another voicemail, this time asking that I return their call. I did, and they wanted to verify what method of payment I wanted to use. I have a credit card on file with them which is authorized for payments. We reviewed the information, they processed the card, and said the order would be shipping out within the next couple of days.

The following morning, I received another call, once again, about what credit card I wanted to use to pay for the order. I reviewed the information again, the customer service operator said that the card was processed and the order was released. Should ship out tomorrow, September 17.

Another call on the same day; returned the call only to find out that they couldn't process the credit card (Employer provided FSA Debit card with $3500 available) I gave them my bank debit card to process 2 of the 3 medications, and put the third medication on hold until I could verify funds with my FSA account - couldn't afford $650 out-of-pocket today.

2 of the 3 medications are now scheduled to ship September 21, 19 days after the order was "accepted" by Express Scripts. We will need to get a 30-day refill locally for the other prescription as my husband has only 2 days left of his medication, despite requesting a refill 2+ weeks prior to running out.

My husband has a chronic condition and is on about 18 different medications, many of them are pain medications which require very strict schedule adherence and monitoring. Despite our insurance's requirements that long-term support medications be supplied by this mail-order pharmacy, we now spend more time at local retail pharmacies than ever before, paying much more for 30 days worth of medications as "gap-fillers" because we cannot get timely service from Express Scripts.

Then there is the mass confusion at the retail pharmacy because Express Scripts shows that the prescription has been processed (aka "it's in their system", not that it has actually been shipped!) Retail pharmacy then refuses to fill the "stop-gap" order due to the limitations that the insurance company has put on how often a prescription can be filled! Then they need to get Express Scripts on the phone to straighten it out.

We tried doing "Auto-Refill" with Express Scripts, only to have another nightmare - billings for (expensive!) medications without timely notification...... why can they ship and bill an auto-refill in a day, but authorizing a refill that is already in their system takes almost 3 weeks? Results: Increased out of pocket costs, frustration, lost time at work for phone calls and picking up prescriptions locally.

I tried contacting them, but all I get is a computerized answering system. I have had trouble with Express Scripts in the past. Their services and customer relations absolutely stinks. Unfortunately, my insurance only uses Express Scripts. I have made complaints to my insurance carrier regarding Express Scripts and they don't care either. BTW, my carrier is BC/BS.

They say they never received the new order from my doctor's office when I know they did. I've been a patient at this office for more than 20 years. I know the staff very well and they do their jobs properly. Because of this problem, my doctor's office ended up faxing all of the information 2 additional times. It took 3 faxes and 10 days for them to acknowledge they received something. In the end, the first faxed order was lost and only God knows where. The 2nd and 3rd faxed orders started to be processed at the same time which caused a huge problem.

Anyone with insurance knows the insurance is only going to allow so much of a medicine over a certain amount of time. What is wrong with the people at Express Scripts? They start processing two orders for the exact same thing and don't think to themselves that I only need one of them. If anyone were to take 2 scripts for the exact same thing to a regular retail pharmacy, they would be told they need to wait at least 21 days before the insurance will approve another order of the same thing. If my husband hadn't called and made some progress, they would have continued processing both orders and I would have been charged full price for the 2nd order, almost $600.

The phone representatives at Express Scripts are often not nice. Most of them have such a thick choppy accent I can barely understand what they are saying. They also like to talk over what you are saying by interrupting at any chance. And, the way they are apologetic for every little thing is completely unprofessional. The male representatives are worse than the women. Yesterday I had the non-pleasure of having to try to understand one of these individuals. I was so very irritated with this speed talking guy with the thick choppy accent... he finally transferred me to a supervisor after 25 minutes. The male supervisor (Aaron) had a soft monotone voice and was condescending and rude.

The people that work customer service at Express Scripts are by far the worst I've ever had to deal with for getting my kidney transplant medicine. The people at CuraScript are nicer, more professional and definitely more willing to help the customer. Unfortunately for me, my medicine (the one I was forced to get through mail order because it's special) is not special enough to be dispensed by the specialty pharmacy, CuraScript. Go figure.

My advice to you is that if your insurance provider ever gives you the opportunity to get your meds through Express Scripts/Medco, don't do it if you want to keep your sanity. After getting off the phone with these people, I feel I've lost a few brain cells. You'll probably feel the same way.

This last time, I mailed the Rx in, stapled to their form from the last time so there would be no confusion. In the meantime (2.5 weeks after mailing), I've had 3 other Rxs filled by them (in 2 cases long before they needed to be refilled). Note: they call and leave automated messages all the time to say that the Dr. has sent something and they are filling it, etc. I also get emails from them and can check the website for statuses. AT NO time was there ever an indication that they had received my original mailed Rx. I had also sent a letter asking why they had required a signature to receive the package, previously.

Yesterday I received their MAILED response (no phone message, no email, no notes of status online). The response was my original Rx RETURNED to me, stapled to a form letter saying, "We were unable to dispense your Rx due to the reason/s listed below." Reason listed? "We are returning your Rx because Express Scripts is no longer your mail service provider. Please contact your benefits office for further information." Of course I called HR and NO, there has been NO change to my benefits provider (Which I could have surmised since I have gotten 3 other Rxs from them in the meanwhile).

When I call, they want ME to express deliver the RX back to them and PAY for them to expedite their processing and return!! ARE YOU KIDDING???!!! Any company that thinks they are offering a benefit of any kind by contracting with Express Scripts is making a GRAVE error. My life has been screwed up for months because of their over-the-top bizarre incompetence. I've been taking a pill every three days to try to make it until the Rx arrives. These are medically necessary, Doctor prescribed Rxs, not socks. There is NO EXCUSE. PS Their CEO just got a 50% raise last year? NICE... I'd love to have lunch with that jerk. Can we give ZERO stars? I don't feel like they deserve even one.

I can have 3 months’ worth of this medication for under $40.00 compared to the $120.00 I just had to pay AGAIN for just a couple of weeks’ worth. This is the worst company that I have ever had to deal with. They tell me they haven't spoken to my doctor, and that's a lie. They said they need verification. He sent in an 'e-script' and faxed a paper copy. What more do they need? They also spoke on the phone with his office. I don't know what else to do with these people, but I will be making my phone call again today. The only thing that does happen when I call, is my blood pressure rises, and my IQ drops.

The prescription sat at Express Scripts and then I got notification that it could not be filled and to call for an explanation. It was then explained to me that this medication could not be held. So I understand that now. My next concern was to get this prescription as soon as possible. I spoke to a supervisor by the name of Stacy, who promised me the prescription would be mailed back to me and could be resubmitted. I waited a few days - no prescription in the mail. I called to speak with Stacy (who was not allowed to speak to me) and spoke to another supervisor by the name of Mary. She promised this prescription was being mailed. She said she double checked with the pharmacist. Still no prescription in the mail.

I called back and spoke to a supervisor by the name of Evelyn **, who said Mary would call me back. No call from Mary. Evelyn did say she could request a pharmacist contact the doctor to have a written prescription overnighted. I called back the next day to check on the status. I spoke with Mark **, who said there was nothing about the contacting the doctor on the notes in the computer and the case was still "open". I requested a call back from Mary or Evelyn. Nothing. No call, no update. This morning, I finally called the doctor, who is not happy about a lost or misplaced prescription that she wrote and she personally told me that no one from Express Scripts contacted the office.

The problem with Express Scripts are many:

4. They come right out and lie to get off the phone.

So, my son has 2 more days of medication and no one at Express Scripts is making any attempt to resolve this problem.

You can never talk to the same "supervisor" and every time you call, (I have honestly logged over 50 hours with them) you get to talk to another "supervisor", and explain the whole story over again. You can only get a first name and when one "supervisor" drops a dime on a previous "supervisor", the "supervisor" whose full name you have is either at lunch or off that day. This is only the tip of the iceberg with these clowns. They certainly should be investigated at the least. I retired on Heart & Hypertension but my BP has never been higher than when dealing with these morons!!!!

9/10 still no order. Called to see if they could track the order. They gave me a lengthy number and they tried to verify the status and said, "Sometimes you get results with the tracking number and sometimes you don't." They suggested I call my local post office to get a status. At this point, who knows where the order is. Very frustrating. I could have gone to my local pharmacy and picked up the order on 8/21. Do not see the benefit of using this company to fill my prescriptions. 3 weeks is unacceptable. I believe they should overnight the scripts if they have not been shipped within a specific amount of time.

The Express Script firm had us talk to a pharmacist and she called our DR on Friday got the order for the 7th time. Then the pharmacist says to my Dr’s office that they will be calling back. Apparently Express Scripts has gatekeepers who kick back a prescription if it exceeds the manufacturers dosage. Apparently it is about money at Express Scripts and not the patients.

I have been on my Asthma Meds for a lifetime and this medication for 15 years. My dosage is higher than recommended and ALL of MY DOCTORS KNOW THIS ABOUT MY MEDS. The medicine keeps me out of the hospital and ICU and keeps me alive.

PCIP and ES has been filling the right dosages at retail for months but now at their mail order business they decide not fill my needs as a patient and override all of my Dr’s instructions. The game they play is to keep calling the Dr’s office until they get the dosage ordered they want. We have 7 individual orders for my meds from my doctors yet ES will not fill and will just keep calling back until the Dr’s office tells them what they want to hear for a dosage.

ES actually took instructions from a receptionist at my Dr’s office to get the orders changed.

Today a pharmacist called me to tell me that he called my doctor and got my meds changed and lowered to what they need to fill. I explained to him that this is incorrect and that I need my meds to live. He said it: that ES will only provide half my needed meds - that’s what they will fill no matter what the DR orders. That’s all they will fill because it’s what the manufacturers dosage recommends. He was proud he got my DR to agree.

Well I immediately went to my Dr’s office and had talk with my Doc. He said Medco ES was forceful and he needed to check dosages for me but they persisted in changing the orders so he agreed. While I was there I got my prescription for the rest of my inhalers, the increased dose needed to keep me alive. This will not be filled through ES because you refuse to fill it. The pharmacist is an ass and needs to change his career as there is blood on his hands for what he does to protect ES bottom line. Oh and when I do get my Meds filled outside of ES I will recover my funds because I plan on filing against you for the increased cost.

After nearly 30 calls to ES and PCIP and not getting the meds I need to live you win. I give up fighting on this front because you will not provide the basic meds I need to live. Additionally, you have caused an enormous amount of stress in my life and my families. We are changing insurance immediately; we will never use ES or PCIP again.

By the way there are thousands of bad reviews online about ES. They are all true based on my experience. I never had a problem getting my meds for 15 years until ES came along.

You have blood on your hands, you need to really do some soul searching and read what you do to your customers. This is medication for sick people who in many cases need it to live and you do not care. Many of the people have become more ill because of your actions - I know I have because of the stress and running out of my meds. Read what you have done to people!

My fight with you to get my meds is over you have won this battle. However the war still rages and I have a lot of fight left in me so we shall move to expose what you are doing at all costs. Regulatory agencies, class action, media exposure, investor awareness all come to mind. You enjoy your blood money but know this is not over by a long shot.

Please complain everyone. Class action, fight to shut them down or change their methods!!!!!!!

I am completely out of my medicine today. I just filled a complaint with my insurance company. I just found out that all Medco had to do was report that it was lost, but they are so greedy they wanted my money. Horrible company needs to be replaced!!!!!!!!!

I'm still on hold as I type this. 20 minutes and counting... A woman name Nosha just said that my doctor gave them the wrong address. IMPOSSIBLE BECAUSE THAT DOCTOR NEVER HAD THAT ADDRESS. EVER!!!! I've asked for a manager. Still waiting... ROSEMARY A SUPERVISOR says she is now looking at the notes for the bill. 28 minutes of my life and counting... What a colossal joke this company is. I honestly believe the executives running this company are sick, disturbed people. NOW this woman is saying I never called. **!!!

Okay, so I've just hung up and had the MOST INFURIATING TIME - COMPLETELY LOST MY ** ON THIS CALL. In 32 minutes both Rosemary and Nosha asked for my current address, which I gave 2 TIMES! And then she asks for it again!!! TO ALL CONSUMERS STAY AWAY FROM THIS EVIL EMPIRE OF DRUG HELL!!!

Updated on 07/15/2015: 19 months since my first post regarding Express Scripts accounting discrepancies. A letter to the Company CEO made way to assistant office of the president 10/2013. 06/2015 discovery of payments still being placed into incorrect accounts and payments not found yet deducted from bank account. Wife's life sustaining medications on hold as accounts post as past due. Payments made as medications received. Representative agrees of misplaced and lost payments as attachments are forwarded to her desk. Commented this is not a isolated incident throughout the Accredo Health Organization. My payments placed in other accounts are generating unexplainable balances. Customers are required to correct customer service/accounting issues. Records of all conversations, payments, etc. available. Please Help.

I requested that they use a different generic maker for the same medicine (they could see which manufacturer my local pharmacy used before the switch). I was told my doctor would have to rewrite the prescriptions. I really can't bother my wonderful doctor any further. He and his staff have already spent too much time trying to help me with my prescriptions so I can cancel the mail service and pay at least 50% more using my local pharmacy...Express Scripts doesn't care. I am the customer. I'm not asking for a change of medicine, just that they use a different company/manufacturer's product. To require involving my doctor, AGAIN, is a waste of his time and inconsiderate to me. I will also add that the supervisor I spoke to, Erica, was rude and disrespectful.

When we went to the drug store, they called Express Scripts and were told that the refill would cost $98. After arguing with Express Scripts for over an hour, they agreed to refund the difference because it was their error in quoting the $37. Then, the refund of the charge for the incorrect medication was put onto our account as a credit. But when future orders were placed, the charges were not applied against our credit - they still charged our bank card. We will be leaving Express Scripts very soon, and cannot wait to never deal with this bunch of idiots ever again!

Topic: Doctors Request for Prescription via Express Scripts; Days: 12; Prescription Faxes & Calls From Doctor: 4; Phone Time to (Express Scripts, Curascript & Accredo): Over 1600 minutes; Communication By Express Scripts: ALL Recorded Messages (No Human Element); Number of Customer Service Reps: 14 (Was told several conflicting stories); Number of Supervisors: 9; Number of days my wife was W/O Her (MS) Drug: 8, etc.

NOTE: It seems that my wife's MS drug is a Specialty drug therefore only Curascript (contracted via Tricare, Express Script, etc.) can fill it. It CANNOT be sold via local major pharmacies or as far as I know any other company in the USA. Bottom Line: Frustrating and Unprofessional Experience with a MONOPOLY.

There is no clear way to communicate with Express Scripts. One has to spend hours being routed to various persons to get any progress filling an RX. So, finally I got my RX, but it was for 30 days, not the 90 days prescribed! And, instead of a year approval, I was told on the phone, the RX is for 6 months! They must make money by not filling orders. I had been dealing with Medco before Express Scripts bought them. I had similar problems with Medco, but now dealing with Express Scripts has quadrupled the time and aggravation required by patients and doctors. This is a bureaucracy with no responsibility to patients.

Mr.Chris is arrogant and uncaring! The ** had the nerve to holler at me about my medication and the information his co-worker provided me with. I made a complaint against him, like it's going to do any good but it's a start especially since we are spending our money to be treated in such manner. I have nothing at all good to say about these clowns. I wish there was another alternative.

Needless to say I'm still out of medication. Medco/Express Scripts needs a complete overhaul. Someone needs to step in and regulate the activity and the horrible treatment that we as customers receive. I'm sure if it was their loved ones being treated in this manner they wouldn't like it either. I hate to have to dial their number...

As of 28 August 13, they are still out of this medicine and she is due for a refill. Even though they posted on their dubious web site (actually, it's a complete waste), at the beginning of this week that my wife's ** medicine was being shipped, I called today and ES said they are out of this medication as well. They blamed the lack of medicine on the manufacturer and they have no idea when medicines they're out of will be restocked. The only way to find out if they have restocked medicines that they were previously out of is to call and spend 5-10 minutes on each phone call, only to be told that they are still out of the medications.

Because of pharmacy copay increases and pending increases, I would like to use the services of mail order. What is the point of having a mail order pharmacy if they can't meet demand? At what point do consumers stop using ES because of the hassle and unavailability of medicine?

ES told me that they would "try" to stop the script from being dispensed. ES succeeded. My $451.44 was returned to my account. On 8/19 I took that very same prescription to CVS and had it filled with the generic brand which is what I wanted all along. On 8/23 I checked my account and the exact same amount had been debited AGAIN by ES. I went to my bank and told them not to pay that amount because I did not authorize it. My bank put a hold on that amount and cancelled my C. Card. I later found out that ES processed my "cancelled" prescription on 8/12/2013 the exact same day that I contacted ES and told them to CANCEL the prescription. I received the meds on 8/27 and contacted ES to see how I could return them in their original packaging. I was told that could not be done. I went on their website and cancelled all my home delivery medications. I will NEVER do business with their mail order services again. These people are beyond stupid and beyond incompetent.

Every time I call Express Scripts (which has been almost every other day, for the past month), they've given me a variety of excuses, ranging from my prescription was out of date, to the doctor's note was illegible, to they lost my prescription, to there's a hold placed on my account because prior authorization hasn't been met. My doctors have called them numerous times with the information, and I've even sat on an hour and a half conference call listening to my doctors give them the prescription over the phone but nothing ever gets shipped out and I have to start from square one every time I call because they "can't find the order" or the "doctor's office didn't give us the right information"... (even though I've started to make records of who I've talked to at Express Scripts, nobody seems to have a direct line or voicemail access). They always end the call saying, 'We have the information we need. We need to process it, and you'll be contacted when it's ready to ship" but nobody ever contacts me, and it is never shipped out.

My doctor's office is annoyed at having to send over the prescription about 2x a week, and my Humira representative is frustrated that I'm not getting the treatment I need. I've had to contact my company's insurance representative to see what her recommendations are, and if we can go through a different company because this is NOT OKAY.

Don't ever do business with this company, and don't ever rely on them to get anything done--especially something that is so important, like medicine.

I have always been pro-retail pharmacy versus mail order for a few reasons. 1. Mail order pharmacies fill thousands of prescriptions all over the country. If you call a pharmacist they do not know anything about your history other than the medications you are taking. Retail pharmacists have more time (and motivation) to get to know you as a patient and help you with drug interactions, OTC options, etc. 2. Mail order pharmacies are not going to look at your prescription and go over other potential options (cheaper or more effective) with you. Part of a pharmacist's job is to verify that a medication is a good fit for you as a patient. 3. We all know how frustrating a phone tree is. Sometimes it takes 30 min of being on hold before you are able to even speak to someone! 4. Filling your scripts at a retail is instant gratification. You don't have to wait for the med to be mailed.

These and many more are reason why I fill at a retail pharmacy.

Yes, it costs more, but I feel like the benefits GREATLY outweigh the extra savings. My Express Scripts problem is they are trying to force me to do mail order and it just isn't right. I have to "make a decision" every year to fill retail which means I have to actually take time to go online and find a button that says fill retail this year and accept it. Ridiculous! When I went online, I couldn't find the button ANYWHERE. All that I saw were links to switch my meds to mail order. This, to me, should be illegal. It's no different than your insurance company forcing you to fill at one retail pharmacy only!

My point is, save the hassle and headache and just fill it at a retail pharmacy.

Why did it take weeks for them to get in touch with me and didn't they see I provided payment weeks ago? And the card I gave them was good! This is not the first time. Over the summer I ordered a refill for myself and my daughter (over the phone) and they did talk to both of us individually. I paid for both refills over the phone. They never sent my daughter's and we had to call weeks later and they said we need to pay for it first.

I was pissed because I already paid and now she was out of her medication. They never notified us that they were holding this due to payment, we had to call! They hardly ever call to say something is wrong. They just ignore the situation until I have to call. If they do call it's usually something that they neglected to do. Very frustrating....been going to local pharmacy more and more just so I don't have to deal with these idiots.

By sending Express Scripts a certified letter I am putting this corporation on notice, that I am unwilling to be responsible for any additional services or product and/or shipments to my address or for the payment of any package containing prescription product if it (Express Script) chooses to process and mail packages to my address without my express prior authorization in writing. TAKE A STAND = DON’T BE A VICTIM = MAKE YOUR VOICE COUNT FOR SOMETHING. The more of us who stand up and tell Express Scripts we will not take it anymore the stronger and louder our voice is noticed.

There is *no* concept of customer service with this company, nor of shame by their phone "customer service" representatives: Example: I have a prescription which uses ejection pens. I had the needles set-up for auto refills (90-day supply). They started shipping the needles every two months, and charging me $50 for each shipment. When I called and asked, I was told that they will ship "when the records indicate that you are down to a 55-day supply." I asked why they did not seem to do this with other prescriptions, but only for the needles. No answer available.

On the web site, they have four places where prescriptions are listed: History; Auto Refill (current); Set-Up Auto refills; Request refills. From what I can tell, these four lists are done off of separate data bases; the lists have almost no correlation with each other.

When a refill request is faxed-in, it is usually filled immediately upon reception, rather than waiting for the insurance company's next refill date. Thus, one pays for a prescription that would be covered if EP waited. When the request has been faxed to the Dr, but not yet processed, there is absolutely no indication of this on the web pages, meaning that duplicate requests are easily sent. Multiple prescriptions for the same medication are listed as separate prescriptions on the lists, just adding to the confusion (and the needless co-pays).

I have spent literally hundreds of dollars this years, on prescriptions that would have been covered completely, if Express Scripts had waited until the proper refill date. I hope that someone from MD State Employee Benefits reads these pages, because otherwise we may be stuck with EP forever...

If you ordered your prescription by telephone your home address is okay for venue (where you file the small claims action). Express Scripts has no regard for the consumer and what is honest and above board. Send a message to EXPRESS SCRIPTS that you will be not cheated by this corporation. As an aside, I contacted Medicare regarding this problem. Their response: "I am so glad you have another source to get your medication - so many calls and problems with Express Scripts"!!!!

I try not to be suspicious of the motives of others, but I'm starting to question their business practices. When the contract for insurance coverage comes up for renewal I'm going to inform Blue Cross/Blue Shield that I will not accept Express Scripts as the prescription drug provider. While I'm very happy with Anthem BC/BS I'll probably open up the competition to others simply because of Express Scripts.

I was stupid and paid Express Scripts online for the $10.00 last month, so lo an behold that stupid company decides to send the invoice to my checking account making us pay for the whole amount. Because when you enter any credit card, debit card or any checking account info they automatically deduct monies but they do not tell you this on the website. These are the most inaccurate employees that I have ever seen. Well to even make it better they deduct the money from my checking account on a Friday and of course the billing dept is closed. Cannot do anything about it until Monday, August 19, 2013 and by the way they will send me a check when they fix it. This is what customer service told me.

Hell I did not send them a check. They got paid automatically when they deducted my monies. We are both on disability and only get paid once a month. Now I will be overdrawn from my bank but this stupid company does not care that they have no customer service and the whole company needs to go broke and go out of business. They make me sick to my stomach.

So, the doctor (who is a specialist) fills out the prior authorization and sends it in and the prescription is IMMEDIATELY denied. In the denial, they told my specialist doctor that I needed to try ibuprofen, physical therapy, and cortisone shots BEFORE they would consider approving my medication. So...let me get this straight... I went to a specialist doctor because I am in constant pain and over the counter medication - which does not fix the problem - stopped working long ago (this includes cortisone). The third option, physical therapy, was specifically NOT an option since it would make the bones grind against each other (remember, no cartilage on one side).

So, let's review... of the three "options", two are pain medications that do not fix or relieve the problem, and the third option will directly make the problem worse. And, my doctor has purposely not been provided with the information he needs to appeal the decision. In fact, Express Scripts LIED to my benefits administrator by claiming that they faxed the appeal process and form to my doctor several days ago. I checked with the doctor's office today and they never received a thing. When I called Express Scripts to complain, I didn't get very far. When I told the "customer service rep" that I wanted to file a complaint, she promptly hung up on me. Really? Lied to, hung up on, no way to file a complaint. Wonderful.

I understand that this is a prescription. I wouldn't have a problem if Express Scripts denied it due to cost. I probably wouldn't have a problem if it was denied because there was a viable alternative. But...why is a PHARMACY company trying to dictate physical therapy which is a medical treatment decision?? Physical therapy is NOT a part of "step therapy" where you try all the cheapest generics to prove they don't work before you get the medication you were originally prescribed*.

Since when did Express Scripts hire doctors to override a medical decision by a specialist MD?? I cannot even begin to comprehend how wrong this is. I now have to figure out how to pay for an $800 prescription out of pocket because I know that that's where this is headed and I am in constant pain. I really don't want to skip the $800 treatment in favor of a very expensive, complete knee replacement which will cost me thousands in co-pays and deductibles.

If this is the future of healthcare, where a NON-DOCTOR can dictate any treatment at all and completely ignore a medical professional with years of training and expertise, then we are all in serious, serious trouble. If this continues, none of us will be allowed to actually see a "real" doctor because all medical and pharmaceutical decisions will be made by companies like Express Scripts and their legions of non-medical call center staff. God help us all.

*I am not mocking generic medications. If they work, then great, that's money saved for everyone. But, not all medications work for all people in the same way and there are different side-effects to consider, and these considerations are totally ignored by companies like Express Scripts.

When my son is sick in the hospital I have no help I am the only one that can take care of him. This company is HORRIBLE and I am just so fed up already! 4 years using them I hate to call. I hate the time that it takes just to speak with someone and the time that it takes in the duration. I can't stand that when I tell them I want to make a complaint I'm told they have noted it and that is all. I was just told when I asked "When a supervisor logs a complaint, where does it go? How do I know something is being done about this?" Well he was very nasty and told me "I do not have to give you a complete background of our company and how it is run. I log the complaint and my system tracks it." I have made MANY complaints and I am so done with this company. They mess with my income and with the health of my 13 year son that suffers from a very severe seizure disorder.

I told them after my 4th call on MONDAY that my son only had 6 days left of his medication and I come home today to a message that they are following up today! No deliveries on the weekend and when I called back to ask where are the meds. I'm told "that there is no tracking update yet and the medication has left the building and no further information is available." Thursday evening and I'm told if I want I can go to a pharmacy and have a fill done but I'm responsible for the payment. I asked them if they were going to reimburse me the hundreds of dollars I have already spent doing so. Money that I could use to put food on the table for myself and my other 2 children! This is beyond ridiculous already and I seriously need to know who can help me make a difference. I really want to NEVER use Express Scripts again!!!!

I also suffer from seizures and I can not take the generic. It took my doctor writing letters upon letters to get that approved. They did not care that I was still having seizures because I can't take their generic. I don't know if you can help me, but please at least listen to what I am telling you. The military needs to get rid of Tricare and Express Scripts for a new program for our military and their families. One that will cover what ever our doctors visit and medication the doctor prescribes.

Express Scripts totally disregarded the doctor's orders and the order from the physician's asst. to fill a 30-day supply. No amount of phone calls and being switched from department to department to department could I clear this matter. I will not pay double for a rx I can fill at my local pharmacy for $40 on my rx plan. This is not fair, you cannot return the tube and the consumer needs to eat it. Okay - how to fix the problem. Sue in small claims court - obtain the name of the person to sue from your state Consumer Affairs or corporate DIV. And look at the name of the entity for "service of process". This is the entity to serve to get into small claims court and fight the dishonest thieves.

How can this be done? How can this be legal? And how is there no communication between the pharmacy and the patient for an increased out of pocket expense to the degree of 3000%? I am outraged by this. I am 41 years old and I am able to find the money to pay this increase, but I don't feel it's right by any means. This medication is typically taken by 70- and 80-year-olds on a fixed budget. How is this legal!!! How are they getting away with this?

It's a mess. Very bad. Every day my heart aches for customers. Every day another co worker starts migraine or depression meds, or makes the decision to fill out an application else where.. before we get let go anyway.

I can attest to all these complaints, I've had people transferred 4x before they get to me. WHY: We're trained to take dedicated calls for certain clients. Your insurance wants people to help you who have been trained in your benefits. I personally handle all most all call types.. so the buck stops with me. With merge the phones don't drop people where they need to be, and not all accounts are in one system, some Medco some ESI still. This should be resolved soon but OMG who has time to be transferred 4 x.

Your doctor sent in your prescription 3x now to ESI. Where is it? Well I can tell you. WHY: If Medco gets an ESI prescription it's suppose to be transferred to ESI... If ESI gets a Medco prescription, it's suppose to be transferred over to Medco. See not everyone is in the same system yet. And if you were Medco.. and your doctor sends rx to ESI side.... good luck is all I can say. If I call that side of the business those reps, and I am telling you more than a dozen times have said to me takes 7-10 days sometimes to transfer it over. WHAT? Medco's turn around time to have it in their hands is 5-8 days. And we're forced to quote that. But it's a lie. Then we're told the calls we get are the exception to the rule. I say not if it's 25% of my calls all day.. But if you say the truth... you're in trouble. And I've been in trouble for just saying tell your doctor to send it to Medco, the old way. It will be visible in 24-48 hrs.

We used to call to verify addresses for certain things, now I have people complaining we call too much, and I check the account notes and they were called 5x about the same prescription. Then another one calls saying I've never used mail order, my doctor sent in error, and you shipped it. I check, yep. Didn't call, didn't verify address, just shipped it. Medco NEVER used to do that. New customer should get a call... apparently the ESI was is whatever Dr has on the order is good enough off it goes with a bill.

It is sooo messed up. You have employees that are horrible, and then you have some that care, that are limping along. No answers. Trying to keep our heads above water and help. I called a pharmacy for a patient today. It cost me a 21 min call. Not good. But the woman was in tears and I was her 7th call today. Solved her problem in 5 min. I will lose my bonus. My call times are too long. It's only a couple bucks anyway. ESI changed it. It's almost impossible to reach. So I'd rather help the customer.

Tell me how ESI was turned down by the government to merge with Caremark... so they moved on and did it with CVS... but couple years later was allowed to merge with Medco. Someone greased someone's palm I'm telling you. I guess we should be glad to have any job. Be glad to have any insurance. I guess... I'm not.

I had already exceeded my minutes on my phone plan, I was FED UP. I told the gal from Shared Solutions, Thank You, And I HUNG UP. I had been without 6 shots already. Thanks to my Aunt who had a friend that no longer was on the same injection as I, that gave me her left-overs or it would of been 30 + days without. Today, I need to figure out what my plan is. All in all, 6 mos with Express Scripts... IF THERE WERE A NEGATIVE STAR THEY WOULD GET IT! I heard people order some of their meds from Canada and it's cheaper. Does anyone know about that? Thank You for letting me vent. It's hard enough dealing with one's illness, the doctors, prescription prices!

Human Resources at Express Scripts will not even forward a resume to a different department if you are over 50 years old. Company policy? Rock the boat and they will make it even harder. I suggest to any prospective employee to get in young at Express Scripts and expect to be put out to pasture at around 40-45. No wonder Express Scripts came in second on the top 50 List of Worst Places to Work. They came in just under Dish Network. I suggest to anyone considering employment in a large company to run screaming in the opposite direction.

Now granted, I did get married and switched to my husband's insurance; however, it's not like I did not update my info, and when I get to the "right" person who can locate my account, they would verify that all of my information was correct and updated. But for some reason even the person who was able to find me couldn't explain why they can't find my prescription. It's almost like when your doctors fax Express Scripts a prescription that prescription goes into a black hole! But for some reason if you talk to enough people and complain enough your prescription will just magically appear! I see two major problems with this company which will be the reason why I am leaving them and do not recommend to anyone else either :

Their integration ever since Medco & Express Scripts became one company it is an abysmal. They have to go through multiple screens to find you, or so I was told. They could just be sitting there drinking their latte and checking their Facebook. Who knows? My doctor prescribed me a prescription, and Express Scripts insists on giving me the generic. Even though my doctor clearly did not prescribe me the generic and also, even if your doctor checks a box at says "no generics" if your doctor did not check a box off the form that Express Scripts wants your doctor to fill out in addition to the prescription, then you will STILL get a generic. This company really goes out of their way to force you into generic.

Unless you tell the rep ahead of time that you too are recording the phone conversation for quality services, then the rep will just tell you whatever to either get you off the phone or tell you there's no other way to go about an issue except for the one you're dissatisfied with. The money Express Scripts claims to "save" you versus Walgreens/CVS will not mean anything if you had to spend 3 hours of your time talking to multiple people just to end up with a prescription you did not want.

1 week later, I am livid, no meds, no valid reason why, but oh, we see that this order came in, in June, sorry about the inconvenience, now it's time to get an attorney. Went to my doctor, been without my insulin for a week, completely out. Levels elevated from 113-117 to well over 400. I called Express Scripts today, and was told we had to pay for the entire order before they release anything. We paid the entire amount for the insulin, how ridiculous!! I refuse to keep calling, it's been over a month. I need a GOOD attorney!

It is now July 2013 and the scripts still had not arrived. Somewhere in the space between March and June, they dropped me from the mail program because of a problem with THEIR TRANSITION from Express Scripts to Medco (I think?). I was never notified and I was told, on the phone in July at MY inquiry, that my script expired in July 2013. Federal law prohibits so because of their incompetence, computer mismanagement, lack of attention to detail and probably somebody in the office talking about their vacation, family or office gossip, I need to suffer at the hands of computer automation, technical bungling and someone not contesting what the "COMPUTER SAID".

I get so sick and tired of these spineless representatives looking you up on the computer and telling you "THE COMPUTER SAYS…" It's not enough that you have to wander through an impersonal telephone menu system just to be connected with the wrong department or being transferred to another person because they don't want to deal with your complaint(s). Wake up America. Automation through computer systems is robbing the general office worker of their ability to think and act on their own. When they don't need to think for themselves, they can be paid less money. Fewer woman hours, because of automation, means more profit for the organization. Even though we have all this automation, prices don't drop...That's another story I have to discuss on another venue. Express Scripts motto? "Let me make you a deal you can't refuse!" and it's all about money!

My doctor says that because the medicine is not kept at the required temperature, and that there are no temperature labels to let you know if the med has gotten too hot or cold, plus the Medicine sits in the driveway for hours (the delivery notice usually comes several days too late or too early) that the insulin is not acceptable for use. So, the doctor will not OK mail order insulin; and, Medco will not abide by the prescribing physicians orders. Now, I am out of insulin. What do I do? Go to the emergency room 3x a day for insulin? Steal insulin? Just die?

So we are getting an inhaler we didn't order, don't need, and at a price 3 times higher than it should be. I even had the doctor's office call to see if they could add in the other two inhalers to make it a 90 day supply, but the guy on the phone told me that they couldn't do that, it would be insurance fraud. Really? It is insurance fraud to adjust the quantity on a prescription, but it is not insurance fraud to send and charge someone for a prescription they didn't order?? And charge the same price for one inhaler as for three inhalers? Really?

And of course, I will be happy to tell everyone I can honestly about the way I was treated, as above.

I told them this on the phone, and the four other people I was transferred to, only to be told they would not remove the bill, that it was a legal transaction because my doctor sent it to them, and I now owed them this money. I'll be following up with my doctor Monday morning, but this seems very illegal to me. I plan to file a formal complaint if possible with the Better Business Bureau. Now unless I pay money for a medication I did not order and CANNOT take, I'll have it go on my credit history. Very, very shady business.

Anyway I decided to keep the med. Then 3 weeks after I decided to keep the med I received a postage paid mailer to return the drug for "disposal". Needless to say I won't be doing that. This entire company seems to not care about anyone or anything except making money and giving people the run around. And while I am on a rant here why does a prescription drug plan have a deductible (not disclosed)? Avoid these bozos at all costs.

It's been two weeks and they told me all was well. Then I got a call that it was still being processed. Incensed, I called and asked for a supervisor. She said the signature on the prescription was "blurry" and and they were calling my poor doc again! I became unglued and demanded to talk to a supervisor. She said she didn't have information about the problem because she couldn't "see" the prescription. Meanwhile it was time to go on vacation, still no meds. Someone actually called me back and said instead of a "team" working on my prescription they would have one person do it. They would put it in the front of the line to get it filled and give me express shipping. Guess whaaaat? Two hours later I got an automated call that they were still trying to process it and did I want to cancel? They are holding my prescription hostage meanwhile.

Has the company calculated the cost of all these wasted man hours for their employees? ENOUGH. If you're in the military or retired, and are stuck with this through Tricare, you can write your Congressman. My husband is a JAG and he says you will be SURE to get a response. I'm doing so and copying all of these posts to mail along!

Meanwhile my husband is going on day 2 without this important medicine. This meant nothing to them. Meanwhile I could not get a short 14-day supply of it because no pharmacy, large chain, small or private, had it. They had to order it and "it was hard to get". I call the doctor who prescribed it and he did the footwork to find a local pharmacy who has it in stock. Thank God! They go to bill it and a note pops up from Express Scripts saying they won't pay for it because they just sent it out to us. I call Express Scripts to see if this is so and they tell me the pharmacist does not know what he is talking about and they have not sent it out and will not be because they have no fax or call from the doctor yet. So, my husband continues this saga of no drug for his atrial fibrillation. What does a consumer do? At this point I don't know for sure but I do know I have to do something. This is 100% unacceptable customer service. They should be ashamed.

I contacted the pharmacist and received a call back from them stating that the prescription coverage had been denied. I had to call Express Scripts again and was told that the pharmacy did not call the right number!! I obtained the number, called the pharmacy back and the following day was told that the Express Scripts authorized the transaction and that I could come in for a refund of my money minus my normal co-pay. When I returned to the pharmacy, I inquired about the 22 other pills as part of my prescription and was told by the pharmacy that Express Scripts wanted me to wait until the 8 day supply had run out, and then they would refill the other 22. About 2 days before my 8 days ran out, I contacted Walgreen's to begin the process of refilling the rest of the prescription. They contacted me and told me that Express Scripts had once again not approved the refill. HOW can this keep happening!!!?

I got furious and called the number for Express Scripts. The young lady on the phone informed me that I could not refill the prescription until 1 month later!!! ARE you KIDDING ME!!!? I am on steroids and I have to wait a month to get sleep!!! I told her this was unacceptable and needed to be remedied ASAP!! She placed me on hold several times and finally told me I could get the prescription filled on the day it ran out!!! After going through this dysfunctional circular conversation over the past 2 weeks, I did not believe her and told her that if I couldn't get the prescription filled, that I was going to seek legal counsel. She actually 'laughed out loud' at me, making me so angry, I asked to speak to her supervisor. The supervisor got on the phone, and started to 'over-talk me', as if he was going to intimidate me in to not making a stink about this incredibly idiotic process!!!!

I told him "I am the customer, you be quiet, and listen to what I am telling you!" I told him the entire story, and he informed me once again that I could not fill the prescription until a month later!!! He told me that I had to have the pharmacy call the Pre-authorization line. I instructed him that they had already done that earlier. He gave the pre-authorization line number, and I gave him a piece of my mind stating, "Express scripts customer service sucks!" I called Walgreen's and left 2 messages for the Pharmacist with the Pre-authorization line number. Later that day Walgreen's returned my call saying everything was taken care of, and they would fill the prescription the following day. Two days later, I received a call from Walgreen's telling me I had a prescription ready for pick up of my steroids. I inquired about the ** prescription, and I could immediately tell that this new pharmacist had no idea what I was talking about.

I informed him of the story, gave him the Pre-authorization line number, and he stated he would 'start working on it'. The following day, I called Walgreen's and was informed by the pharmacist that they were waiting for the pharmacy technician to come in so they could make the call, and they would call me later in the day. It is now 2:30 p.m., and I just called Walgreen's back to inquire about the status of the prescription. The pharmacist stated 'I just got off the phone with them and their policy is only to give 30 tablets for 30 days'! I immediately asked the pharmacist "What number did you call?" He stated, "Do you want to hear what they said first!?" I instructed him that if he called the routine number and not the pre-authorization number that I did not want to hear what they had to say because everything at Express ** (oops I mean Scripts) is reliant upon the pre-authorization line.

The pharmacist agreed to call and I was called within the hour saying they approved the prescription. FOR those of you who don't have the time to waste on being your own advocate with Express Scripts whose policies are CRAZY making and enough to make you want to scream into a pillow or pull your hair out one at a time, here is EXPRESS Scripts Pre-Authorization number: 1-866-310-3666. Patients can call themselves. I had to call it to get the story straight from them. The healthcare system in the United States of America is clearly broken, and as long as we have "Profit" making corporations running these programs, it will remain broken. I have a difficult time understanding why a "Patient" has to take the initiative to do not only the Pharmacist's job but also Express Scripts' job. Express Scripts needs a PATIENT ADVOCATE! I can assure you that when open enrollment happens again at my job, I will not CHOOSE to use Express Scripts in the future!!!!!!!

Today, I go to my mailbox and now Express Scripts has sent me another bottle of the same meds except they sent the name brand, and now I owe $101. I called again and was told that they would listen to the phone call I made before, but if it is not clear to them then again, I am out $101 even if I do not need the medication. I have never heard of a mail-order company that will not take returns or work with the customer. They have HORRIBLE customer service and do not use them and if you can, pay cash at your local pharmacy. I am forced to use them if I use my health insurance. I hope the government looks at Express Scripts as they are a monopoly and should not be allowed to treat people like they do by extorting money from customers.

On July 9th, I checked on it and was told about the need for a quantity override authorization. You'd think that a 90-day prescription would BE a quantity authorization. So I called Medco back on the 10th and they said that they still didn't have the quantity authorization. My doctor said he sent it on the 9th. I called today, July 11th, and they said my order was cancelled and that my doctor would need to send in a new prescription.

Those Medco hack idiots cancelled my prescription in 3 days because of this stupid game they are playing with people's LIVES! Someone is going to die because of these poor practices. If the government wants to play all these control games with us, why don't they try getting companies like Medco/Express Scripts to quit jacking with people's health and something so simple that could potentially kill them? The ONLY good thing I can say about them is that people are extremely kind when you call. I think they are feeling the pain as much as we are because it's them who get stuck answering our angry phone calls. Something has to be done about this hack company before someone dies.

I recently "converted" such a prescription - this is when the nightmare began. Even though they had the prescription information and the shipping address on file, it took a week before the prescription refill order was "received" and then it was cancelled, as they claim they could not verify the shipping address, despite the fact that they had shipped my previous medications to the very same address!

When I tried to log onto their website, the site was "unable to process the request at this time." I call the "customer service" phone number and the incompetence continued. The rep pulls up my account and locates the refill order, but still asked me what date I placed the order! Then tells me the order was cancelled today (Tuesday, July 9th) because the doctor's office that prescribed the medication had not responded to their call they claim they placed on Friday (July 5th.) So in the meantime, I am without the medication, cannot refill it at a "retail" pharmacy, and have no recourse. They are the perfect example of what is wrong with so many of the corporations in the country. All they care about is making a profit and not how their actions or policies hurt their customers. Oh, how I wish I wasn't forced to be their customer!

Meanwhile, they charged me $60.00 each and they kept telling me that it was cheaper because i am getting a 5-month supply. I keep calling them up and all the answers they gave me are different. The manager told me that I should be paying more. She makes me look stupid when I get it from the pharmacy for $20.00 each - the same box, same number of vials. WHY MAGNACARE AND MEDCO? WHY? I don't usually pray for something bad to happen to others, but this one, I wish them to close their company badly. How I wish these reviews have a negative (-100) STAR because that's what I'm going to give them. I just didn't have a choice but the insurance should have at least 2 options because Express Scripts monopolizes. That's why they act like this.

1) They have now blocked my plan from allowing me to receive non-maintenance prescriptions via a local pharmacy. When my doctor wrote me a one-time prescription for an antibiotic, I took it to the local pharmacy and it was denied. I got a call from Express Scripts (from a very rude representative) and was told I had to mail the prescription and wait up to 14 days to receive my medication before I could start taking it. I received the prescription 16 days after it was received by Express Scripts (per their own website). My doctor was FURIOUS to find this out. I now pay out-of-pocket at a local pharmacy for one-time medications.

2) My doctor no longer faxes prescription renewals to Express Scripts because they constantly lose them. I see their point. I sent in a new prescription which was "never received" by Express Scripts. I called to find out where my medication was, since their website didn't list it as having been received. They said I must not have sent it (nice customer service, blame the customer). I had to go back to my doctor for a new prescription, but this time, I scanned it (so I would have a copy), and sent the new prescription in. Again, Express Scripts claimed to have never received it. I went up the chain of command in their call center, through multiple levels of very rude people, only to be told that I must not have actually sent it. What? Again?

I asked if I could send them the scanned copy and was told that that would be acceptable. So I emailed them the scanned copy and got a call back stating that a scanned copy of a prescription was fraud and that there was no way that they'd fill it. This was over a course of three weeks, and I had ran out of my medication. I had to go back to my doctor a third time for the same prescription, and this time, I sent it through FedEx and I required a signature upon delivery. Would you believe that Express Scripts REFUSED to sign and the FedEx came back to me? I really, really wish this was just a bad urban legend, but I have the envelope and the FedEx report showing who refused it at Express Scripts. I ended up filling the prescription locally out-of-pocket.

3) I caught Express Scripts overcharging me on a specific medication by $50. The previous refill was $50 less, and when I documented this, I took it to Express Scripts, who told me that I was mistaken. Not only was it on their website (on my account page), but they had also sent me paper bills that showed the price differences. I took this issue to my health plan manager, who looked into it and found that neither price was correct based upon their negotiated rates. I had actually been overcharged by $20 from the beginning, and then overcharged by $50 on the refill! The manager took it to the Express Scripts rep, who hemmed and hawed and finally admitted that it was their mistake and that I'd receive a refund (this entire process took 5-6 conference calls, dozens of emails, and over three weeks to get this admission of guilt). I did receive a refund about a year later, but only for the $50 they overcharged me on the last refill! They still owe me $60 for the previous three fills. I know that I will never see this money.

4) In addition, their website, which all plan "participants" are required to use, is deeply flawed. Medications that are not mine randomly appear on my account; my medications randomly disappear from my account. Ordering is painful because medications are arbitrarily "locked" (with no explanation) so you cannot order them, and buttons/links do not work. In addition, the dates that medications are received, when they are processed, and when they expire all change with no explanation.

I ordered a medication on 12/23 via the required website, and it was marked with a status of "in process" until 1/5, when it was then marked "expired". Express Scripts waited until 1/5 to begin processing the medication and discovered that it had expired on 12/31. That was why I had ordered it on 12/23 - I allowed five business days for processing (their own process said 2-4 days for processing). I then had to return to my doctor and get a NEW prescription. I have documented all of these things time and time again, but was told each time that their website "might be undergoing maintenance". That is an erroneous statement because it is a blanket statement, and even if true, the DATES should NOT change! Changing dates means that someone is manipulating the data, and that should be illegal since it's essentially fudging the records.

I hate this company with a passion. They are rude and vindictive, and they lie about everything. They overcharge, fail to follow their own processes, and cheat the consumer. They stall and make everything so difficult that people (like me) just give up. In the end, Express Scripts reap the high plan fees and provide NO goods or services for the money I, as the consumer, have to pay them.

It is the opposite of "customer service" because the answer is always NO. Make sure they are noting your account EVERY TIME you call in. I am completely unhappy with this company and their customer support department is a joke. I am paying triple for what I used to pay when I went to my pharmacy and got my medications on a timely basis. Now, I never know when my prescriptions will arrive and what I will be getting and if I need to call them. I have to jump through hoops to get a simple question answered. Gone are the days where I could go to my friendly pharmacist to ask a question or get a last minute refill. It's also so convenient for Express Scripts to have a 'Contact Us' page, but no email option. Your only option is to call. This company SUCKS.

My husband has since retired and now has a different insurance plan that went into effect on July 1st... and guess what is now not covered under this plan? You got it... The prescription we've been trying to fill for TWO MONTHS that we have spoken to Medco about and tried to get filled under the old plan... They literally ** us around for two months and now even if the script was to be approved by the god-pharmacist, we'd have to pay full price because they ripped us off by not filling it when the insurance still covered it.

This joke of a company is a pathetic excuse for a prescription delivery service. They lie, they don't do what they're supposed to do and God help you if you're stuck with them and need lifesaving medication like my husband does... They drag their feet and don't fill valid prescriptions that people are submitting from doctors who know what they're prescribing, and Medco has ZERO right to question it... I hate this effing company. They truly suck... RUN... DON'T WALK... RUN FROM THIS COMPANY. Use anyone else...

Well, all is well now. I called Oxford, by that point howling mad that they would send me to a pharmacy that exhibits such callous disregard for the lives of their patients. They then told me to use Optum RX instead, who have been wonderful, helpful, and agreed to use overnight delivery to get my meds on time. Your insurer making you use Medco? Call them and ask for Optum RX instead. The life you save may be your own.

The last time this happened, they treated my doctor's response as a new prescription and started the whole process over again. This was after I called Blue Cross and they had one of their pharmacists on the line with me as I got booted up the line at Express Scripts. They were openly hostile to the addition of another professional on the line and I suspect they retaliated. I'm writing a complaint to Senator Michael S. Lee of Utah, ranking Republican on the antitrust subcommittee of the Senate Judiciary Committee at: 316 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510. I invite other dissatisfied patients to do likewise.