Research Pharmacy Updates and Reminders

New Recharge Rates effective January 2022

Effective January 1, 2022, new recharge rates will be applied for all studies utilizing Research Pharmacy services. The new rates will also be included in any budgets that have not yet been finalized. Click here to view the updated rates. 

These fees align with the actual costs (i.e., time and materials) of providing the service. Research teams are encouraged to follow best practice budgeting standards by accounting for a 3% increase throughout each budget year of a project.

Shipping Investigational Products to Patients

Since the start of the pandemic, shipping IP to participants has dramatically increased. Please note that shipping requests should be utilized only as a necessity, not as a convenience. This is because shipping increases the risk of loss of IP, removes physical IP double-check by the study coordinator, and causes delays in onsite dispenses. When submitting a shipping request, please fill out the RP intake form and submit to Pharm-IDS-RxBasket@med.umich.edu by 1:00 PM for guaranteed overnight delivery.

Prescription Turn-around Times

The average time to fill a prescription for IP is 30 minutes for oral or prepackaged drugs and 60 minutes for IVs. The actual time depends on the specific study and on the number of requests in line ahead. With this in mind, Research Pharmacy should receive prescriptions well in advance—one or more days whenever possible. In addition, the use of STAT and ASAP designations should be used judiciously and reserved for situations in which the patient is truly waiting, since these flags are used to triage the order in which prescriptions are filled. Your attention to these guidelines helps ensure the best service for all research participants.

Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact Kim Redic, PharmD, Research Pharmacy Manager, kredic@med.umich.edu, or (734) 936-9699.