With all the healthcare changes going on one of the biggest problems people are still facing is prescription drugs. Millions of Americans who purchase their own insurance are struggling with this fact. Even some group coverage out there does not cover the prescriptions as well as they have in the past. Unfortunately times have changed.
Everyday we are looking for alternatives to save money, not just with prescriptions. This is why Walmart still claims profits. Some Americans are giving up on their prescription drugs so they can put dinner on the kitchen table for their families. No one wants this. You obviously were given the medication for a reason, your health. How is it good for your health, to not only to worry about money but not be able to take the medication because of the price?
Here is a list of some of the alternatives I tell my clients:
Substitute: Ask your doctor about taking a less-expensive medication. Even if you stayed with a brand drug but from a different manufacturer, you can save money. You could possibly switch to a generic drug and save even more.
Shop around: Drug prices can vary widely among pharmacies. Just because there are more Walgreens, it does not mean they are selling at a cheaper price. Do not get me wrong, Walgreens is occasionally cheaper than Walmart or Target. You will not know until you shop.
Buying in batches: Mail ordering programs can also save you money. You can do this through local pharmacies. Typically they do give a break for buying in large quantities, just like most things.
Split pills: You could buy double the strength and split the pill in half. The price of the medication is often the same regardless of dosage so you can end up paying fifty-percent less.
Third party prescription programs: There are third party prescription programs that can save you thousands of dollars a year on your prescriptions. Some programs will give you a card that could be better than your insurance for those immediate prescriptions at the pharmacy. This could be no more than a $10 or $20 co-pay. The programs can also give you access to worldwide mail order. You will get a generic with the same active ingredients as the brand name drug you are using.
With these third party prescription programs you can pay only a fraction you currently do. I have a client that is doing the worldwide mail order. He orders the double dosage pills and splits them. By doing this he can get a year’s supply for under $20.00, for the whole year! The local pharmacies could not even beat that.
Butch Zemar