CIGNA Member Correction

CIGNA members: Please note that you may receive a letter in the mail stating that The Dermatology Center of Indiana is no longer in your network. This communication from CIGNA is incorrect and we would like to reassure you that we are still in network with CIGNA. We look forward to continuing to service you and your family for all your dermatology needs.

Accutane / Isotretinoin Announcement

For those patients currently on or planning on starting Accutane / Isotretinoin for the treatment of acne at The Dermatology Center of Indiana, please read through the below information and follow the instructions to help us prevent interruptions to prescriptions or patient care.

Recently there was a scheduled governmental update to the iPLEDGE system. The iPLEDGE system is utilized to confirm knowledge about isotretinoin such as negative pregnancy tests for women of childbearing potential, and also provides patients, prescribers, and pharmacies the ability to manage access to prescriptions for isotretinoin.

Due to significant problems with the update implementation that occurred earlier this week, thousands of patients, pharmacists, and providers across the United States have not been able to access the iPLEDGE system and have been unable to reach the support center through phone calls or messages.

To help resolve some of these issues for our patients, we would like each Accutane patient to take the URGENT ACTIONS required below to help circumvent and alleviate some of the problems that currently do not have a definitive date of resolution.

1. If you are able to, please access your account on the iPLEDGE program website at www.ipledgeprogram.com

2. Once into the patient portal, at the top of the header, there is a notation that states “change my prescriber”

3. Please attempt to change your prescriber to one of the four following individuals.

  • If you a Zionsville patient, please change your prescriber to Audrey Hewitt.
  • If you are a Plainfield patient, please change your prescriber to Sarah Lawson or Dr. Shayna Gordon.
  • If you are a Greenwood patient, please change your prescriber to Brittany LaFree.

4. Once you have done these three steps, please email the following information to our practice at dermindy@dermindy.com with the subject line : iPLEDGE Access for : (insert your name) 

A. Name of patient

B. Date of birth of patient

C. iPLEDGE program number if known

D. Best contact phone number

E. Best contact email address

F. Whether or not you were able to access the iPLEDGE program website

G. If yes, you were able to access the website, which provider you are currently listed under as your prescriber or if you changed the prescriber, to whom you changed to.

It is vital we have all of this information as soon as possible to prevent significant interruptions in patient prescriptions and / or care. Please do not put other information into your email other than this information to expedite resolution of these issues.

Most likely, this will be a temporary fix to this major problem, but it is our goal to be solutions oriented to ultimately continue to focus on providing great care to our patients now and for many years to come.

Additional Information about the iPLEDGE issue:

The American Academy of Dermatology held an emergency meeting with numerous stakeholders and government officials involved in the system to seek a rapid resolution to the system issues.  Unfortunately, following that meeting on Thursday, no defined plan or resolution timeline was determined.

Here is a link to a Dermatology Times publication that has summarized and continues to update many of the issues that are occurring with the program.  I would encourage you to review this and other links within the articles to stay up to date on the process of resolving the significant challenges with and inaccessibility to the system.

Dermatology Times Articles: https://www.dermatologytimes.com/view/aad-suggests-halting-ipledge-program

In addition, after reviewing this data, I would encourage you as a patient to also send an email to customersupport@ipledgeremssupport.com asking for resolution on this issue as soon as possible. 

We appreciate your understanding and cooperation and helping us in this difficult and trying situation for all.