$10 million in prescription savings for Dallas County residents

On Tuesday, May 10th at 11:00 AM, Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins and Commissioners Cantrell, Garcia, Price and Dickey hosted a press conference to discuss the Coast2Coast Rx Card program that was launched in September 2009. The press conference was held in the Commissioners Court located at the County Administration Building, 411 Elm Street, Dallas, TX 75202.

Since the program’s launch, Dallas County residents will have saved nearly $10 million dollars by the end of May. Savings overall has been at 45.7% with 2011 savings so far at 53.1%! County residents have filled approximately 400,000 prescriptions over the past twenty months using the card.

The Coast2Coast Rx card allows all county residents and their family members, regardless of income, age, or health status to participate in the program. Even pets and family members living outside the county are able to take part in the program. The Rx card is distributed free of charge and may be used at all pharmacy chains and most independent pharmacies in Dallas County and includes over 60,000 drugs in its formulary. “With healthcare costs continuing to rise, prescription drug discounts will help ease some of the financial burdens county families are facing at a time when they need it the most,” said Judge Jenkins. “There are no eligibility requirements so the Rx card has had a sizeable impact on uninsured residents, residents facing high insurance deductibles and allows savings for persons in need of prescriptions not covered by their current plans” added Jenkins.

The savings for residents through the Rx program comes at no expense to Dallas County; in fact Financial Marketing Concepts, the company providing the Coast2Coast Rx Card pays the county a royalty for each filled prescription and the royalty does not increase cardholder cost. The royalty paid so far has been $188,000. As of March 1st, the royalty was raised from $.75 to $1.25 – and that will help Dallas County continue to support its public health programs.

Besides the discounts on prescriptions, the card also provides substantial discounts for lab and imaging tests for uninsured residents. Soon residents will be able to save even more money as discount dental, vision and hearing benefits are being added to the card. Cardholders will save up to 70% on those benefits and the benefits extend to all family members. “FMC is proud to assist residents of Dallas County to save money on the cost of their prescriptions and lab and imaging tests and soon their dental, vision and hearing needs ” said Edward W. Rahn, President of FMC.

The Coast2Coast Rx card is available for residents at many participating pharmacies and most Dallas County libraries. Residents will also be able to print the Rx card, check their prescription prices and view the nearest participating locations at www.coast2coastrx.com by clicking on the “print free card” menu button and clicking on “county” and then Dallas County from the list of counties.

The Coast2Coast Rx card provides residents with a valuable tool to help maintain their health and well being at an affordable cost. The Coast2Coast Rx card is now in 80 cities and counties throughout the nation. Besides Dallas County – Collin, Denton, Ellis, Hill, Hunt and Kaufman Counties have all joined the Coast2Coast program – providing residents in those counties with the ability to save on their prescriptions as well as lab and imaging tests.

Dallas County commissioner: use public to nab ticket scofflaws and criminals*

August 12, 2010 -- Dallas County Commissioner Mike Cantrell wants to use the lure of reward money to nab some of the hundreds of ticket scofflaws who owe the county millions.

Cantrell says it can be done using the county's existing "Most Wanted" Web site that keeps track of everyone who owes the county money for Class C misdemeanor offenses.

He said those with active warrants for more serious misdemeanor offenses (Class A and B) can be added to the most wanted site. Cantrell wants to team up with Crime Stoppers to offer rewards for those who use the county's "Most Wanted" site to provide info about a suspect's whereabouts.

"That's the smart way to take these people off the streets," said Cantrell, who has led the charge in Dallas County to use technology for criminal justice purposes.

You've probably noticed that not everyone listed on the site has an accompanying photo. That's because right now the county can only use an existing jail mug if the person has been arrested before.
The county is still waiting on an attorney general's opinion asking to use people's driver's license photos if they haven't been arrested and don't have a jail mug shot.

Why is this important? Due to budget cuts, there might be fewer constable and sheriff's deputies out serving warrants in Dallas County. Using you, the public, to find these scofflaws is free and easy. Want to make some easy money?

By the way, you can also use this Web site to plug in your name to see if you have any outstanding tickets in Dallas County.

*Source:
Kevin Krause/Reporter

Lawson Road Resolution Recognizes Staff for Innovative Planning and Development

April 14, 2010 -- Lawson Road, a road that has been a major issue for Dallas County and Kaufman County was recognized Tuesday for Dallas County’s innovative planning and development that has expedited its much needed repair. The road is now in the design and engineering phase and is expected to be under construction within a few years all due to the tenacity of two Dallas County departments.

Dallas County Public Works staff, under the direction of Colonel Donald Holzwarth and the Dallas County District Attorney’s Civil Section, under the direction of Bob Schell, took an innovative approach by involving the Central Appraisal Districts to determine where the best fit for the county line would be, had it memorialized it by both counties and accomplished this feat without incurring the costs of surveying and years of court battling. Due to the persistence of these two departments, a request for funding through the Regional Transportation Council was made in a timely manner, facilitating its approval as of February 2010.

Since 2004, multiple complaints on the condition of the road and numerous reports of injuries and incidents have been brought to the attention of Dallas and Kaufman Counties, however since neither county could rightfully take responsibility of the road due to the county line dispute, such complaints have been filed to no avail.

Upon completion of said construction, the road will be under the responsibility of the Town of Sunnyvale for future maintenance.

Archives »»