For Michael Holmes, founder and president of Rx Outreach, a pharmacy can be a ministry.
In 2010, he said, he heeded a call from God and left corporate America after 30 years – having served in senior leadership positions at Express Scripts, Edward Jones, Automatic Data Processing and Continental Airlines – to open his non-profit pharmacy as a spinoff of Express Scripts. Based in Earth City, Rx Outreach now employs 85 people.
The St. Louis American talked to the 55-year-old St. Louis native, who worships at Grace Church in Maryland Heights, about the mission of Rx Outreach, Medicaid expansion, and whether a Christian faith is consistent with business practices.
The St. Louis American: What’s your elevator pitch on Rx Outreach?
Michael Holmes: Rx Outreach is a not-for-profit pharmacy that provides medicine that is affordable to low-income people. It was established in 2010 as a spinoff from Express Scripts. We have helped 176,000 people save over $220 million on medicine, and we are growing rapidly. In the first quarter of this year, we helped 51,000 people save $20 million. We provide over 500 different medications for chronic conditions and serve all 50 states, plus Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
The American: What motivated you to start this business?
Michael Holmes: I was praying one morning when God put it on my heart to do it. I got up, wrote down on a piece of paper a proposal, went to work at Express Scripts and added some data and presented it to our chairman, George Paz, that day. And he agreed on the spot. One moment I was an executive vice president of a corporation with more than 1,200 people reporting to me, and the next day I was running a little non-profit with 50 employees.
The American: Tell me more about your faith.
Michael Holmes: I was raised Christian, and I have grown closer to Christ over the years. As our patients know, our bottle caps say we honor God by serving others. We put Him first here. I don’t use the “CEO” title. God is our CEO, He is really the one in charge. I can give you story after story about how amazingly faithful God has been to us.
The American: Tell me one.
Michael Holmes: I was praying one day. When we spun off from Express Scripts, we had to make our own payroll – that was one condition. I was praying and thanking God for blessing us and allowing us to be successful and asking that he continue to give us manna on a daily basis.
While I was praying, my phone rang. Obviously, I didn’t answer it. But when I picked up the message, a lawyer in Chicago had called us. At first I thought, “Oh no, what went wrong? A lawyer is calling.” But the lawyer called and said, “You have been recommended to us.” They had money left over from a settlement and wanted to send us a check – and they sent us a check for $500,000.
The American: Jesus kicked the moneychangers out of the temple. Is Christianity consistent with business practices?
Michael Holmes: We’re a non-profit, so we have no money motive, we have a service motive. I have not taken a pay raise, though I give raises to our staff because we have to stay competitive. To me, this is my ministry, so my answer is, yes. Even Jesus had a trade – he was a woodworker. The people who supported him, his disciples, were fishermen, they had careers. They gave them up when they into ministry, but they had careers.
The American: Would expanding Medicaid be doing God’s work?
Michael Holmes: Every person deserves access to good health care. I’d love to see Missouri expand Medicaid. I’d love to see every state expand Medicaid. It may mean we would not be needed as much, but that would be okay. If Medicaid was expanded and Rx Outreach wasn’t needed, there are always places to serve.
The American: Who is eligible for your services?
Michael Holmes: Eligibility is income-based, so we serve people whose income is up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level. If you’re single, that’s a salary of about $35,000 a year. For a family of four, that’s a salary of up to about $71,000 a year.
The American: How does someone access your services?
Michael Holmes: In St. Louis, you would call 314-796-1234 or go online and register at Rxoutreach.org.
Follow this reporter on Twitter at @chriskingstl.
