Kirtland Medical Services impacted by nationwide pharmacy cyberattack Published Jan. 6, 2024 377th Air Base Wing Public Affairs KIRTLAND AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. -- UPDATED: March. 6, 2024 The Defense Health Agency leaders are aware that military clinics and hospitals as well as many retail pharmacies nationwide continue to be affected by a cyberattack on the nation’s largest commercial prescription processor, Change Healthcare (CHC), resulting in a significant network interruption. The estimated time to restore capability is unknown at this time; however, the Kirtland AFB Pharmacy has implemented manual procedures to ensure beneficiaries can get the medications they need. The services minimally impacted by this network interruption, but with potential processing delays: Acute/Urgent prescriptions (e.g. antibiotics, pain medications) Routine/ Maintenance prescriptions (e.g. blood pressure medications, diabetes medications) For both acute and routine medication requests, we are asking that patients to send a message to “Kirtland Pharmacy” via the Patient Portal or report to the Bx Pharmacy to check in in-person. Patients will be provided an estimated turnaround time varying on a case-by-case basis. Prioritization will be determined after clinical review by pharmacy staff. Currently we are anticipating up to potentially 3- 5 days for non-urgent needs. Refills Starting 4 Mar 24, we have turned the automated refill line back on. Refills can be called into 505-846-5770. Currently, we are anticipating 3-5 days for refills. We are unable to process any early refills at this time. Transfers Most medications can be transferred to any Tricare network Pharmacy. A majority of retail pharmacies that were impacted by the cyber-attack have been able to use an alternative system to Change Healthcare and should be able to submit prescriptions to Tricare. If they are unable to submit to your insurance, you may have to pay full cash price and submit a claim for reimbursement. For information on filing a claim, visit https://www.tricare.mil/FormsClaims/Claims. Medications that cannot be transferred: Schedule II Narcotics (e.g. Percocet and Norco) cannot be transferred between pharmacies Schedule III-IV Narcotics can be transferred one time to a different pharmacy. The transfer can only occur after at least one fill from the initial pharmacy. Please contact a pharmacy staff member to see if your medications fit into these classifications Express Scripts Mail Order is able to process prescriptions at this time The services impacted by this network interruption: Non-formulary Prescription Requests A Prior-Authorization (PA) is a routine process. It is the process used by Tricare to make sure your prescription is safe, effective, medically necessary, and cost effective. With this current network outage, we are unable to receive information from Tricare that indicates that your medication is approved. We are asking that patient bring in an approval letter from Tricare stating that their PA has been approved or denied. You can check if your medication requires a Prior Authorization utilizing the following link: https://www.express-scripts.com/frontend/open-enrollment/tricare/fst/#/ Patient safety and access to healthcare are our highest priorities. We understand the inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your patience while pharmacies take longer than usual to safely fill prescription needs. If you have questions specific to your prescriptions, you can reach the pharmacy at 505-846-3200 Option 2, 2, and 1 or if you have any questions about our current processes the Kirtland Patient Advocate at 505-249-2675. UPDATE: Feb. 28, 2024 Defense Health Agency leaders are aware that military clinics and hospitals and many retail pharmacies nationwide continue to be affected by a cyberattack on the nation’s largest commercial prescription processor, Change Healthcare (CHC), resulting in a significant network interruption. The estimated time to restore capability is unknown at this time; however, the Kirtland AFB Pharmacy has implemented procedures to ensure beneficiaries can get the medications they need. For patients to enter the pharmacy’s queue for all new and/or refill requests, they must send a message to “Kirtland Pharmacy” via the Patient Portal or report to the Bx Pharmacy to fill out a designated envelope. Patients will be provided an estimated turnaround time varying on a case-by-case basis. Prioritization will be determined after clinical review by pharmacy staff. Currently we are anticipating up to potentially 3- 5 days for non-urgent needs. Note: If your network provider’s office was impacted, they may provide you with a hard copy paper prescription. Some offices are still unable to send electronic prescriptions at this time. Some TRICARE network retail pharmacies are also affected by the outage. If a beneficiary needs to use a retail pharmacy, confirm that the pharmacy is able to process prescriptions with Tricare. If they are unable to, you may have to pay full cost for prescriptions and file a claim for reimbursement. For information on filing a claim, visit https://www.tricare.mil/FormsClaims/Claims. TRICARE Home Delivery Program is not affected by this issue. Home Delivery beneficiaries do not need to take any action. A reported cyberattack on the nation’s largest commercial prescription processor, Change Healthcare, has affected military clinics and hospitals worldwide. On Feb. 21, Change Healthcare disconnected their systems to protect patient information. TRICARE Pharmacy Services are down nationwide impacting the Kirtland Pharmacy, Veteran’s Hospitals, TRICARE network retail pharmacies, Express Scripts, and the Military Treatment Facilities automated refill line. Unfortunately, there is no estimate when it will be back up again. If you activated your prescription or called in your refill prior to Feb. 21, 2024, it is available for pickup and a team member can assist you. The Kirtland Pharmacy is still accepting all prescription requests made in-person at the BX Pharmacy and via the MHS GENESIS patient portal. A pharmacy professional will provide an estimated turnaround time for each new request, but times will be delayed and vary on a case-by-case basis. UPDATE: Feb. 28, 2024 Defense Health Agency leaders are aware that military clinics and hospitals and many retail pharmacies nationwide continue to be affected by a cyberattack on the nation’s largest commercial prescription processor, Change Healthcare (CHC), resulting in a significant network interruption. The estimated time to restore capability is unknown at this time; however, the Kirtland AFB Pharmacy has implemented procedures to ensure beneficiaries can get the medications they need. For patients to enter the pharmacy’s queue for all new and/or refill requests, they must send a message to “Kirtland Pharmacy” via the Patient Portal or report to the Bx Pharmacy to fill out a designated envelope. Patients will be provided an estimated turnaround time varying on a case-by-case basis. Prioritization will be determined after clinical review by pharmacy staff. Currently we are anticipating up to potentially 3- 5 days for non-urgent needs. Note: If your network provider’s office was impacted, they may provide you with a hard copy paper prescription. Some offices are still unable to send electronic prescriptions at this time. Some TRICARE network retail pharmacies are also affected by the outage. If a beneficiary needs to use a retail pharmacy, confirm that the pharmacy is able to process prescriptions with Tricare. If they are unable to, you may have to pay full cost for prescriptions and file a claim for reimbursement. For information on filing a claim, visit https://www.tricare.mil/FormsClaims/Claims. TRICARE Home Delivery Program is not affected by this issue. Home Delivery beneficiaries do not need to take any action.