With some careful planning, you can save money on your prescription drugs.
When you get a prescription from your doctor, do you simply take it to your pharmacist and pay the listed price? Many people don’t realize that, with some strategizing, you can save significant amounts of money on your prescription medications. Whether your prescription drugs are for chronic conditions such as cancer or diabetes or for something temporary, like postoperative pain, some planning can save you money, says Kim Buckey, vice president of client services for DirectPath, a company that provides personalized health benefits education and enrollment services to large employers. “Health care is, for good or bad, a service that we need for our entire lives,” Buckey says. “It affects not only us as individuals but our entire family, and [it] experiences frequent cost increases that we have little or no control over. By investing some time upfront, you’ll be better prepared to manage the cost of the care that you need.” Here are nine strategies for saving money on prescription medications:
Ask your doctor about possible alternatives.
Ask your doctor why he or she wants you to take a prescription drug, Buckey says. What will it do for you? What are the potential side effects? Is there an alternative like a less expensive over-the-counter product or even an herbal supplement that might be just as effective? If so, you may be able to use the less expensive OTC medication. Also ask whether there’s a less expensive generic option.
Make an appointment with your pharmacist.
Set up a time to meet with your pharmacist to have him or her review your complete medication list, says Lindsay Slowiczek, a pharmacist who recently completed a drug information research fellowship at the Center for Drug Information and Evidence-Based Practice at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska. Provide your pharmacist a list of all of the prescription drugs, OTC products and supplements you take. Your pharmacist can help you determine not only the safest and most effective drugs for your conditions, but also identify any unnecessary duplicate therapies or other drugs that you can discontinue using (with your doctor’s approval), which will save you money. Your pharmacist can also tell you whether you’d save money by paying for your prescription in cash rather than shelling out for the insurance copay. It’s often less expensive to pay for prescription drugs in cash than to use your insurance for a prescription. In addition to having your pharmacist review your medications, you may want to ask him or her to identify lower cost, therapeutically equivalent medications that may be good alternatives for you, says Kevin Hourican, executive vice president, CVS Health and president, CVS Pharmacy. CVS pharmacists can use a digital tool to evaluate individual prescription savings opportunities based on your specific insurance plan, he says. Using this tool, your pharmacist can identify lower cost options and work with your doctor to help you switch.
Shop for the best price.
The price of any given prescription medication can vary widely across chain pharmacies, local independent drug stores and big-box store pharmacies, Buckey says. You can save money on your prescription meds by taking the time to investigate the prices of your prescriptions. To comparison shop, conduct an online search or call different pharmacies and drug stores to check the prices of a particular prescription drug. Websites such as GoodRx.com and DestinationRx let you compare drug prices at different pharmacies in your area, Slowiczek says. And keep in mind that BenefitsCheckUp.org helps senior citizens find medication assistance programs that can save them money. Another strategy worth trying is to check with your benefit provider to see if your plan offers preferred pharmacies within its pharmacy network, says Leslie Achter, chief executive officer of Inside Rx, based in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey. These pharmacies have agreed to charge lower prices for your prescriptions, Achter says. Using a prescription savings card can also lead to savings, she says. Inside Rx offers such a plan, which it also makes available to Spanish-speaking patients, who can access information about the discount program at InsideRx.com/Es.
Check if your drug manufacturer offers assistance.
Some pharmaceutical companies offer patient assistance and discount programs for people who meet certain income and prescription insurance criteria, Slowiczek says. Check the manufacturer’s website to see if you qualify. There are often applications on these websites, which you can download, fill out and return to see if you’re eligible for assistance. You may be asked to provide proof of your income and an authorization statement from the prescribing physician. “These programs may offer free [pharmaceuticals] or deep discounts you can use with your insurance, and may help you if you don’t have [insurance] coverage,” Slowiczek says.
See if your state has a pharmaceutical assistance program.
About two dozen states have pharmaceutical assistance programs, many of which are aimed at aiding low-income elderly people or individuals with disabilities who don’t qualify for Medicaid, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. The NCSL website provides background on state discount programs. Some states provide a direct subsidy to the consumer, using state funds; others offer a discount only for pharmaceutical purchases and no subsidies. And some offer both subsidies and discounts.
Consider seeking assistance from a nonprofit group.
There are nonprofit organizations that offer resources to help people who are underinsured cover out-of-pocket expenses for prescription drugs. For example, since 2004 the Patient Access Network Foundation has provided more than $3 billion in financial assistance to nearly 1 million underinsured patients. The funds help cover out-of-pocket expenses for prescriptions. The organization has an easy online application and a dedicated call center you can reach from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. EST for help applying for assistance and managing grants. PAN provides financial assistance to help pay out-of-pocket expenses for more than 60 diseases, including colorectal cancer; diabetic foot ulcers; heart failure; multiple sclerosis and prostate cancer. Other nonprofits that help underinsured people pay for the out-of-pocket costs of prescription drugs include the Patient Advocate Foundation and Good Days. The PAN Foundation provides a link where patients can apply for assistance.
Request samples from your doctor.
If you haven’t taken the prescribed medication before, it can be helpful to see how you react to the drug before paying for a full prescription, Buckey says. Ask your physician for samples. Pharmaceutical representatives often give doctors prescription drugs (especially of new medications) to encourage them to prescribe the drug. And even if your doctor doesn’t have samples, he or she might have a coupon for you to try the medication for free, Buckey says.
Ask for a higher dose if the pill can be split in half.
Some prescription medications can be split in half, says Dr. Robert I. Danoff, program director, family medicine and combined family medicine/emergency medicine residency programs for Jefferson Health — Northeast in Philadelphia. Some prescription pills are “scored,” with an indentation in the middle so they can be cut into two pieces, he says. This design allows you to extend your medication supply, which saves money. “For example, if you usually take 5 milligrams of a medication two times per day, you would buy 60 pills for a 30-day supply,” he says. “However, if your health care provider and pharmacist agree that the medication can be effective if the pill is cut in half, getting a larger dose pill can save you money. In this example, rather than getting 60 pills for 30 days, you’d be better off getting 10-milligram pills of the same medication for a 30-day supply and cutting them in half.” Keep in mind that some pills are considered “extended-release” or “slow-release” medications, so check with your pharmacist and doctor first.
Identify the most cost-effective duration for your prescription.
Another little-known strategy to save money on your prescription medication expenditures is to work with your pharmacist to evaluate whether a 90-day prescription would be more cost-effective than a 30-day prescription, Hourican says. Some insurance plans offer patients savings if they fill their prescriptions for a longer duration. This can also be more convenient for patients, since it means fewer trips to the pharmacy.
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9 Strategies for Saving Money on Prescription Meds originally appeared on usnews.com
