Patent ID: 8311891

Claim:
A method of managing payment information as part of prescription fulfillment on a network pharmacy system comprising a plurality of facilities including a first and second pharmacy location connected by an information processing system, the first and second pharmacy locations at separate geographic locations with each of the first and second locations having at least one employee and each of the plurality of facilities having a facility computer server, the method comprising: receiving a prescription drug order for a customer at the facility computer server of the first pharmacy location participating in the network of pharmacy resources; receiving from the customer a preferred pick up location for the customer's prescription drug associated with the prescription drug order, wherein the preferred pick up location is the second pharmacy; storing an original order data (OOD) object, at the information processing system, containing a set of information received from a customer during placement of the prescription drug order; creating a task object file that is associated with the OOD object and unique to the OOD object, the task object file storing a discrete set of tasks to be performed for filling the prescription order and that is used to carry and save work to be performed and work completed on the prescription order; collecting payment information; storing a data portion associated with payment information in the task object file; determining if a payment investigation is required for the payment information; when the payment investigation is required: extracting a relevant part of the data portion from the task object and communicating the relevant part of the data portion to a third party; modifying the task object file via the facility computer server to change the work tasks associated with the OOD object based on at least one of payment information contained in the OOD object and a set of customer parameters including the customer's preferred pick up location; based on the customer's preferred pick up location, routing the task object file from a first queue stored on first facility computer server at the first pharmacy location to a second queue stored on the second facility computer server at the second pharmacy location over the information processing system connecting the first and second pharmacy locations, wherein routing the task object includes one of communicating the task object file or communicating a reference to the task object file; and dispensing the prescription drug associated with the OOD object to the customer at the second pharmacy location.