A Prescription for Hope: How SVdP’s Pharmacies Change Lives One Pill at a Time
Every day, Society of St. Vincent de Paul pharmacist Kellie Elisar sees the fallout of a broken system: Patients who can’t afford insulin, seniors choosing between blood pressure medication and groceries, grieving spouses who can’t pay for prescriptions.
“I find some days I’m a sister, sometimes I’m a mother, and sometimes I’m a social worker,” says Elisar, who is in charge of SVdP’s charitable pharmacy in Baton Rouge, La. “It just depends on the day and the need that the patient has.
“Today, we had a gentleman that came in and he lost his wife. Financially, things just completely changed for him. He was so used to having extra Social Security income from his wife, and they would pay everything together. And then, ‘Whoa, now what do I do?’”
At a time when soaring drug prices remain a major political issue, SVdP’s innovative charitable pharmacies have long been working at the grass roots to address the immediate needs of people in places such as Baton Rouge, Dallas and Cincinnati. It’s in these facilities that hope beckons for people whose day to day lives are overshadowed by the need to pay for medicine.
“Medicine or food, food or medicine. When you’re making those kinds of choices, it’s not really a choice,” says Michael Acaldo, Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA’s National Chief Executive Officer.
When he was the president and CEO of the Greater Baton Rouge Council in 1995, he encountered too many people forced to make such a choice.
“Back in 1995, there was no Medicare Part D,” he said. “Even on just regular Medicare and other income, they could have prescription medicines that cost more than their entire monthly budget combined.
“If it’s a chronic disease, their call isn’t just for help today or this month. It becomes a long-term problem.”
Acaldo organized his Baton Rouge team to create SVdP’s first charitable pharmacy, one whose concept of long-term free pharmaceutical support has now spread nationally. Sometimes people walk in to the pharmacies. Other times, Vincentians discover the needs of people during one-on-one Home Visits with the people they serve.
“What a powerful opportunity [when we] fill that prescription every month. That is a heart, soul-driven activity because that is us really connecting with Christ.”
The work couldn’t be done without people, companies and organizations that are generous with their treasure, their time, and – yes – their pharmaceuticals.
“On a daily basis, we are getting donations from the public (and) nursing homes,” Elisar says. “They had somebody that passed away, or they had mail order sending me bottles of medicine where people don’t know what to do with them because their insurance covers it and they call and ask if we can use it.
“We put dates on them and make sure that everything is compliant with the pharmacy board. That allows me to have the access to be able to fill prescriptions that are very, very expensive.”
Elisar, her team of two staff and about five volunteers have a daily encounter with Christ through these recipients.
“I’ve literally had somebody come in and they said, ‘Thank you for being kind. Nobody has been kind to me today.’ I’m getting chills just thinking about it. How did you not see Christ in every single person that walks through this door?”
Cincinnati Builds a Legislative Path
This innovative model was eventually adopted by SVdP Conferences and Councils across the country and even helped inspire legislation in Ohio to open the door for charitable pharmacies.
“We were meeting with our neighbors and learning more about some of their challenges,” says Brad McMonigle, CEO of St. Vincent de Paul Cincinnati. “It became a pattern where they were having to choose between buying food, paying rent, taking their medication as prescribed or not taking it at all.
“The leadership in Cincinnati actually assisted in drafting a bill in Ohio to allow for charitable pharmacies. That bill was passed, and in 2006, the charitable pharmacy in Cincinnati was launched.”
Originally, the Cincinnati effort led to 7,000 prescriptions filled in the pharmacy’s first year. Now, the Cincinnati pharmacy is on target to reach its 110,000th prescription this year.
“We will fill their first 30 days with very little questions asked, because we know that they’re not coming with all their paperwork, all their proof of income. They’re just coming in in desperate need,” McMonigle says.
“We will schedule an appointment for them to come in with all that requested information, to see if they then are approved for ongoing care. Once they come under our care, we’ll serve them until they either are able to obtain insurance or they have a better income.”
Offering Spiritual Medicine
The SVdP Dallas pharmacy started similarly through the work of one longtime Vincentian, Hank Herman, whose dogged work with state legislators allowed Saint Vincent de Paul North Texas to open its doors in 2018 and offer more than 400,000 free prescriptions in seven years.
“It’s one of those things where we know that we literally are saving people’s lives because of the medications that we’re giving,” says Luis Gonzalez, CEO of St. Vincent de Paul North Texas.
“We have one patient, a young adult diabetic. We’ve been taking care of her since she was 15 years old. Last year, she told us, ‘I’m going to college because you saved my life. I can go to college and have a life because you’ve been taking care of me and giving me medications.’ Those kinds of things happen to us all the time.”
To maintain and expand their reach, such innovative ministry needs financial support, the kind that Gonzalez says brings an incredible return on compassionate investment.
“The value of these medications, from a pure financial standpoint for an investor, a dollar in is about $35 to $40 worth of value going out the door because of the value of the medication,” he said.
That’s beyond the spiritual medicine that people like Elisar and her team, and similar St. Vincent de Paul pharmacy teams, offer those in need.
There are now seven St. Vincent de Paul charitable pharmacies across the country that provide long-term low-cost or free pharmaceutical support to their communities. SVdP pharmacies can be found in Atlanta, Baton Rouge, Biloxi, Cincinnati, Dallas, Houma, Madison, and Monroe. Access to health care has completely transformed the lives of those in need.
Click on the following links to learn more about St. Vincent de Paul charitable pharmacies:
– Atlanta | Baton Rouge | Biloxi | Cincinnati | Dallas | Houma | Madison | Monroe
