According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, St. Louis-based pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts is set to launch a national pilot for Vitality's GlowCap pill reminder device. We have written about GlowCap before, but the WSJ has a concise description of the medication adherence offering:

"The container—actually a high-tech top for a standard pill bottle called a "GlowCap"—is equipped with a wireless transmitter that plugs into the wall. When it is time for a dose of medicine, the GlowCap emits a pulsing orange light; after an hour, the gadget starts beeping every five minutes, in arpeggios that become more complicated and insistent. After that, the device can set off an automated telephone or text message reminder to patients who fail to take their pills. It also can generate email or letters reporting to a family member or doctor how often the medication is taken," according to the report.

Express Scripts plans to begin a small version of the pilot in about a month's time and will launch a larger trial focused on drugs related to cholesterol, diabetes, high blood pressure and heart failure during the summer months. Express Scripts notes that while the trial's purpose is to determine the efficacy of GlowCap's reminder service, the companies are also eager to learn more about how patients take medication and why they fail to take it at times.

For more on the program, read this WSJ article