NCT04587063

Brief Summary

In this evaluation, four versions of emails will be sent to eligible health plan members who are not currently enrolled in the health system's mail-order pharmacy. A control group will not receive any communication. The researchers hypothesize that the use of content informed by behavioral nudge theory in the emails should lead to increased enrollment in the health system's mail-order pharmacy.

Trial Health

87
On Track

Trial Health Score

Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach

Enrollment
5,266

participants targeted

Target at P75+ for not_applicable

Timeline
Completed

Started Oct 2020

Geographic Reach
1 country

1 active site

Status
completed

Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.

Trial Relationships

Click on a node to explore related trials.

Study Timeline

Key milestones and dates

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

October 6, 2020

Completed
7 days until next milestone

Study Start

First participant enrolled

October 13, 2020

Completed
1 day until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

October 14, 2020

Completed
6 days until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

October 20, 2020

Completed
Same day until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

October 20, 2020

Completed
Last Updated

October 27, 2020

Status Verified

October 1, 2020

Enrollment Period

7 days

First QC Date

October 6, 2020

Last Update Submit

October 26, 2020

Conditions

Keywords

PharmacyPostal ServiceElectronic MailCommunicationEconomics, BehavioralPsychologyLoss FramesFear Appeals

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

  • Mail-order Pharmacy Enrollment

    Binary variable indicating if there was an enrollment in the health system's mail order pharmacy

    1 week from the intervention

Secondary Outcomes (3)

  • Email Opens

    1 week from the intervention

  • Email Link Click

    1 week from the intervention

  • Email Unsubscribes

    1 week from the intervention

Study Arms (5)

Standard Email

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

The "standard of care" email is the same as one used in prior outreach efforts at the health system, emphasizing reduced cost for medications and convenience.

Behavioral: Highlighting Cost Savings and Convenience

Email with Healthcare Cost Savings

EXPERIMENTAL

The email emphasizes future reductions in healthcare costs due to increased adherence with mail-order pharmacy, in addition to mentioning reduced prices for medications. It also uses fear appeals by stating the risk of hospital stays and how mail-order pharmacy could be an easily-achievable way to avoid this negative consequence.

Behavioral: Fear AppealsBehavioral: Message about Future Healthcare CostsBehavioral: Highlighting Cost Savings and Convenience

Email with Endorsement

EXPERIMENTAL

The email is a letter from a doctor at the health system's health plan--who may been seen as a trusted source of information--encouraging the benefits of using a mail-order pharmacy.

Behavioral: Endorsement from a DoctorBehavioral: Highlighting Cost Savings and Convenience

Email with Comparison Table

EXPERIMENTAL

The email includes a table comparing the benefits and drawbacks of mail-order and chain pharmacies, which appeals to their sense of agency and allows them to make the choice that best suits them.

Behavioral: Comparison TableBehavioral: Highlighting Cost Savings and Convenience

No Contact

NO INTERVENTION

Members do not receive an email.

Interventions

Fear AppealsBEHAVIORAL

Email

Email with Healthcare Cost Savings

Email

Email with Healthcare Cost Savings

Email

Email with Endorsement

Email

Email with Comparison Table

Email

Email with Comparison TableEmail with EndorsementEmail with Healthcare Cost SavingsStandard Email

Eligibility Criteria

Age18 Years+
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersYes
Age GroupsAdult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

  • An active member of the health plan (Medicare, Commercial, or Exchange)
  • Currently prescribed maintenance medications
  • Not currently subscribed to the health system's mail-order pharmacy
  • Has an email on record

You may not qualify if:

  • Explicitly opted out of receiving emails from the health system
  • Only has eligible current prescriptions for fewer than 28 days
  • Only has prescriptions that cannot be sent via mail-order pharmacy (e.g., antidepressants, specialty-tier drugs)
  • Is a Medicare member in the coverage gap

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Sites (1)

Geisinger

Danville, Pennsylvania, 17822, United States

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Patient Acceptance of Health CareCommunicationBehavior

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Treatment Adherence and ComplianceHealth Behavior

Study Officials

  • Amir Goren, PhD

    Geisinger Clinic

    PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

Study Type
interventional
Phase
not applicable
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
DOUBLE
Who Masked
PARTICIPANT, CARE PROVIDER
Masking Details
Participants and providers are not aware that different mailer versions exist, and they do not know what elements in the letter are being tested.
Purpose
HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH
Intervention Model
FACTORIAL
Model Details: 1 x 5 design
Sponsor Type
OTHER
Responsible Party
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
PI Title
Program Director, Behavioral Insights Team

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

October 6, 2020

First Posted

October 14, 2020

Study Start

October 13, 2020

Primary Completion

October 20, 2020

Study Completion

October 20, 2020

Last Updated

October 27, 2020

Record last verified: 2020-10

Data Sharing

IPD Sharing
Will share

Data with no personally identifiable information will be made available to other researchers on the Open Science Framework for transparency. This will include the essential data and code needed to replicate the analysis that yielded reported findings. The PI did not examine or analyze any data from this study prior to this registration.

Shared Documents
STUDY PROTOCOL, ANALYTIC CODE
Time Frame
The data will become available after publication of study results in a scientific journal and will be available as long as the Open Science Framework hosts the data.
Access Criteria
The data on the Open Science Framework will be open to anyone requesting that information.

Locations