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How to Save on Prescription Drugs
By Tamera Huber
Seniors and others living on fixed incomes are disproportionately impacted by the high
cost of prescription drugs. Today’s Transitions talked with Randy Gaither, assistant
pharmacy merchandiser for the Kroger Company who manages pharmacies for Kroger’
s mid-south division (Ky., Tenn., Southern Ind. and Southern Ill.) and Tihisha Rawlins,
AARP’s associate state (Ky.) director of grassroots initiatives, to offer readers ways to
save on prescription drugs.
Switch to generics — or older drugs.
Randy Gaither urges consumers to discuss generic drugs with their doctors or
pharmacists. “If they can get an alternative that would still meet their needs,” he says,
patients should try. Gaither recently overheard a discussion between a Kroger
customer and her pharmacist. The woman had fallen into the Medicare “donut hole” (a
provision of the 2003 Medicare bill that covers 25 percent of drugs up to $2000, then
pays nothing until drug costs reach $5,100) and was paying $400 a month for her
prescriptions. After she switched to generic drugs, she only paid $35 a month. “That’s a
dramatic example,” he says, but it can happen.
AARP publishes a booklet: Know Your RX Options for Treating High Cholesterol that
compares prices of brand name drugs to generic cholesterol medications. “There’s a
huge difference in cost,” Rawlins says. “They can be as low as $50, then it goes up to
$150.” Consumer Reports compares prescription drugs on its website at www.
consumerreports.org/health. According to the Cost Containment Research Institute,
consumers can save as much as 93 percent on generic drugs.
When a new drug arrives on the scene that treats a condition that an older drug also
treats, sometimes the demand for the new drug pushes the price for the older drug
down. Ask your doctor if the “older” drug may be as effective. If so, there’s a chance the
cost may be lower.
Buy a 90-day supply
Most health care plans and pharmacies offer savings if the consumer orders a 90-day
supply of a drug through the mail or by phone. AARP members that sign up for its
pharmacy plan can order 90-day supplies through AARP online at www.aarp.org. Most
pharmacies offer the same option. A 30-day supply may cost $10, while a 90-day supply
may cost close to the same.
Not only will this strategy save money on the actual prescription but will also save the
consumer a trip to the pharmacy and the gasoline it takes to get there. Or order by mail
and you don’t have to make even one trip.
Know your insurance
If you don’t know what supplies your insurance plan covers, ask. Items such as syringes
and test trips for diabetes may be covered. Gaither recalls a new customer at a Kroger
pharmacy who didn’t know that her insurance paid for her diabetic testing strips. “She
was paying out of pocket,” he says.
If your insurance has a high co-pay or doesn’t discount or cover a certain drug, ask
your doctor if she/he thinks a cheaper over-the-counter medication will help your
condition as effectively as a prescription drug. If so, be sure to check the price of the
over-the-counter versus the prescription. In some cases, the over-the-counter may
actually cost more.
Lower-income seniors can apply for Part D prescription coverage through the Social
Security Administration, Rawlins says. “It’s free to apply and if they qualify, they’re given
a new open enrollment period,” she says. “And they can change the plan from month to
month.”
Pharmacists are a good resource, according to Gaither. “There are so many tiers of
drugs in insurance plans,” Gaither says. “If you can get to an alternative that would still
meet your needs, discuss it with your physician and your pharmacist.” He says that
some patients don’t question their doctors or pharmacists about the availability of lower
priced alternatives. The result: you may be paying a higher amount for a drug when
another lower cost drug would work as well. Consumers “need to know their benefits
better,” he says.
Discounts and Freebies
One of the best-kept secrets in the pharmaceutical world is that drug companies offer
free drugs to qualified applicants through various programs. Over 100 drug companies
have such programs and some have applications online. A caution: not everyone
qualifies; there are strict income and insurance requirements.
Shop around. The cost of a specific drug may be different from one pharmacy chain to
another. Call to ask about the price and your out of pocket cost.
Many pharmacies offer prescription discount cards. Kroger, Walgreens, CVS, Wal-Mart
and Target, among others, offer discounts. Call your neighborhood pharmacy to make
sure it participates.
Be sure to ask your doctors for samples. If you’ve ever seen a polished woman or man
with a case on wheels ask to see your doctor while you’re in the waiting room, don’t be
upset. Chances are that’s a pharmaceutical representative. These reps drop caseloads
of drug samples off to your doctor. Don’t be shy — ask for those samples.
“Together RX” is a free prescription savings card for qualified consumers and is
sponsored by pharmaceutical companies. Cardholders save from 25 percent to 40
percent on brand-name drugs. No maximum usage limit applies and there are no
monthly costs. Check out www.togetherrxaccess.com for more information and to apply.
Veterans should check with the Veterans Administration. Changes in some laws may
lower drug costs for you.
Reduce quantity of prescriptions
Review your medications with doctors and pharmacists regularly, at least once a year,
to make sure you still need those medications or if you still need the same strength.
Invest in a pill splitter, which cuts pills in half — not to reduce the strength of your
required medication, but to break a higher dose in half. Some drug companies price
medications the same for both a higher and lower dose. Splitters are inexpensive,
typically a few dollars at pharmacies.
When your doctor prescribes a new medication, ask for samples or get a seven-day
supply on the prescription. By doing this, you can try out the medication to see if it
works well for you before paying for a full 30-day supply.
SHIP program
According to Tihisha Rawlins of AARP, when seniors enter Medicare’s “donut hole,”
they typically need help. They can access programs like SHIP, the State Health
Insurance Assistance Program. The free program walks consumers through their
options regarding prescription drugs and healthcare costs. The Medicare website lists
contact phone numbers for each state and U.S. territory at http://www.medicare.
gov/contacts/static/allStateContacts.asp.Tihisha Rawlins recommends The Cost
Containment Research Institute out of Washington, D.C., for a comprehensive study of
options. The institute publishes a Free and Low Cost Prescription Drugs booklet. Visit
www.institutedc.org for the latest printable version.
By Tamera Huber
Seniors and others living on fixed incomes are disproportionately impacted by the high
cost of prescription drugs. Today’s Transitions talked with Randy Gaither, assistant
pharmacy merchandiser for the Kroger Company who manages pharmacies for Kroger’
s mid-south division (Ky., Tenn., Southern Ind. and Southern Ill.) and Tihisha Rawlins,
AARP’s associate state (Ky.) director of grassroots initiatives, to offer readers ways to
save on prescription drugs.
Switch to generics — or older drugs.
Randy Gaither urges consumers to discuss generic drugs with their doctors or
pharmacists. “If they can get an alternative that would still meet their needs,” he says,
patients should try. Gaither recently overheard a discussion between a Kroger
customer and her pharmacist. The woman had fallen into the Medicare “donut hole” (a
provision of the 2003 Medicare bill that covers 25 percent of drugs up to $2000, then
pays nothing until drug costs reach $5,100) and was paying $400 a month for her
prescriptions. After she switched to generic drugs, she only paid $35 a month. “That’s a
dramatic example,” he says, but it can happen.
AARP publishes a booklet: Know Your RX Options for Treating High Cholesterol that
compares prices of brand name drugs to generic cholesterol medications. “There’s a
huge difference in cost,” Rawlins says. “They can be as low as $50, then it goes up to
$150.” Consumer Reports compares prescription drugs on its website at www.
consumerreports.org/health. According to the Cost Containment Research Institute,
consumers can save as much as 93 percent on generic drugs.
When a new drug arrives on the scene that treats a condition that an older drug also
treats, sometimes the demand for the new drug pushes the price for the older drug
down. Ask your doctor if the “older” drug may be as effective. If so, there’s a chance the
cost may be lower.
Buy a 90-day supply
Most health care plans and pharmacies offer savings if the consumer orders a 90-day
supply of a drug through the mail or by phone. AARP members that sign up for its
pharmacy plan can order 90-day supplies through AARP online at www.aarp.org. Most
pharmacies offer the same option. A 30-day supply may cost $10, while a 90-day supply
may cost close to the same.
Not only will this strategy save money on the actual prescription but will also save the
consumer a trip to the pharmacy and the gasoline it takes to get there. Or order by mail
and you don’t have to make even one trip.
Know your insurance
If you don’t know what supplies your insurance plan covers, ask. Items such as syringes
and test trips for diabetes may be covered. Gaither recalls a new customer at a Kroger
pharmacy who didn’t know that her insurance paid for her diabetic testing strips. “She
was paying out of pocket,” he says.
If your insurance has a high co-pay or doesn’t discount or cover a certain drug, ask
your doctor if she/he thinks a cheaper over-the-counter medication will help your
condition as effectively as a prescription drug. If so, be sure to check the price of the
over-the-counter versus the prescription. In some cases, the over-the-counter may
actually cost more.
Lower-income seniors can apply for Part D prescription coverage through the Social
Security Administration, Rawlins says. “It’s free to apply and if they qualify, they’re given
a new open enrollment period,” she says. “And they can change the plan from month to
month.”
Pharmacists are a good resource, according to Gaither. “There are so many tiers of
drugs in insurance plans,” Gaither says. “If you can get to an alternative that would still
meet your needs, discuss it with your physician and your pharmacist.” He says that
some patients don’t question their doctors or pharmacists about the availability of lower
priced alternatives. The result: you may be paying a higher amount for a drug when
another lower cost drug would work as well. Consumers “need to know their benefits
better,” he says.
Discounts and Freebies
One of the best-kept secrets in the pharmaceutical world is that drug companies offer
free drugs to qualified applicants through various programs. Over 100 drug companies
have such programs and some have applications online. A caution: not everyone
qualifies; there are strict income and insurance requirements.
Shop around. The cost of a specific drug may be different from one pharmacy chain to
another. Call to ask about the price and your out of pocket cost.
Many pharmacies offer prescription discount cards. Kroger, Walgreens, CVS, Wal-Mart
and Target, among others, offer discounts. Call your neighborhood pharmacy to make
sure it participates.
Be sure to ask your doctors for samples. If you’ve ever seen a polished woman or man
with a case on wheels ask to see your doctor while you’re in the waiting room, don’t be
upset. Chances are that’s a pharmaceutical representative. These reps drop caseloads
of drug samples off to your doctor. Don’t be shy — ask for those samples.
“Together RX” is a free prescription savings card for qualified consumers and is
sponsored by pharmaceutical companies. Cardholders save from 25 percent to 40
percent on brand-name drugs. No maximum usage limit applies and there are no
monthly costs. Check out www.togetherrxaccess.com for more information and to apply.
Veterans should check with the Veterans Administration. Changes in some laws may
lower drug costs for you.
Reduce quantity of prescriptions
Review your medications with doctors and pharmacists regularly, at least once a year,
to make sure you still need those medications or if you still need the same strength.
Invest in a pill splitter, which cuts pills in half — not to reduce the strength of your
required medication, but to break a higher dose in half. Some drug companies price
medications the same for both a higher and lower dose. Splitters are inexpensive,
typically a few dollars at pharmacies.
When your doctor prescribes a new medication, ask for samples or get a seven-day
supply on the prescription. By doing this, you can try out the medication to see if it
works well for you before paying for a full 30-day supply.
SHIP program
According to Tihisha Rawlins of AARP, when seniors enter Medicare’s “donut hole,”
they typically need help. They can access programs like SHIP, the State Health
Insurance Assistance Program. The free program walks consumers through their
options regarding prescription drugs and healthcare costs. The Medicare website lists
contact phone numbers for each state and U.S. territory at http://www.medicare.
gov/contacts/static/allStateContacts.asp.Tihisha Rawlins recommends The Cost
Containment Research Institute out of Washington, D.C., for a comprehensive study of
options. The institute publishes a Free and Low Cost Prescription Drugs booklet. Visit
www.institutedc.org for the latest printable version.