by Gabriel Levitt, Vice President, PharmacyChecker.com and Sam Werbalowsky, Pharmacychecker.com | Mar 20, 2012 | Drug Prices, Healthcare Reform, Saving Money on Prescription Drugs, Skipping medications
There is a drug affordability crisis in America. As we’ve reported, in 2010 48 million adults did not fill a prescription due to high drug costs. Perhaps surprisingly, in addition to millions of uninsured Americans, many Americans with insurance forgo prescription medication due to cost. Such insured Americans, unable to cover necessary medical costs, including medication, are often referred to as the underinsured. A previous study from 2004 by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists reveals that 82.1% of those who restricted medication to due costs were actually insured. The picture is clear; underinsurance is a major issue in the battle to afford prescribed medication.
The Affordable Healthcare For America Act will help millions of Americans, including with their drug bills – but it is not a cure-all. It is uncertain how the new regulations will affect drug pricing. With drug price negotiations and cost reducing drug importation measures excluded from the healthcare act, and with millions of insured Americans currently struggling to pay high drug costs, what is to say newly insured people will not struggle to afford or go without prescribed medications?
Throughout the year PharmacyCheckerBlog will be following the research and predictions about drug affordability under the new law. Stay tuned…
Tagged with: affordable prescriptions, Drug Prices, Healthcare Reform
by PharmacyChecker.com | Feb 10, 2012 | Saving Money on Prescription Drugs
A new and portable strategy for saving money on prescription drugs has just hit the market with the LowestMed app from LowestMed.com. Our research finds that the most substantial savings consumers can expect are for generic medications, but far less so when it comes to expensive brand named drugs.
To help American consumers “Find the lowest price… fast” at a local chain pharmacy, LowestMed has created a free smartphone application that uses the current location of your phone to find the nearest pharmacy with the lowest price on a prescription drug that you need. According to the Washington Post, “LowestMed also comes with a free discount card, which can further reduce the price of a medication by between 10 and 85 percent.”
Testing out this new savings strategy, we find that a 30-day supply of Lisinopril 10mg can cost anywhere from $10.00 (Target) to $36.63 (CVS) – the app not only helps you find the $26.63 savings – 73% but also to map the location for you.
While savings like those on Lisinopril are great, many consumers may need to turn to verified international pharmacies when shopping for big brand names. Thirty tablets of Plavix 75mg, for example, cost $197.64 at the cheapest bricks and mortar pharmacy on LowestMeds.com, $205.10 at the most expensive. Saving $7.46 per month is nice, but saving $153.10 is not only much better but necessary for some Americans who could simply cannot afford the U.S. price! Plavix costs just $52 for a month supply at the lowest priced international pharmacy in the PharmacyChecker.com Verification program – a savings of 74%!
Tagged with: app, brand-name, bricks and mortar, CVS, discount card, free discount card, generic, international p, Lisinopril, LowestMed.org, Plavix, smartphone, Target, United States, Washington Post
by Gabriel Levitt, President, PharmacyChecker.com and Prescription Justice | Feb 3, 2012 | Drug Prices, Personal Drug Importation, Saving Money on Prescription Drugs
According to ABC News, “Santorum told a large Tea Party crowd here that he sympathized with the boy’s case, but he also believed in the marketplace,” and that companies wouldn’t be making the life-saving drugs if they didn’t believe they would turn a profit doing so. The former senator from Pennsylvania seemed to be lecturing the American people when he said: “People have no problem paying $900 for an iPad…but paying $900 for a drug they have a problem with — it keeps you alive. Why? Because you’ve been conditioned to think health care is something you can get without having to pay for it.” (more…)
Tagged with: ABC News, Abilify, brand name drugs, free market, generic drugs, high drug costs, iPad, life-saving drugs, medicaid, Medicare, Pennsylvania, pharmacy, prescription medication, Rick Santorum, schizophrenia, Tea Party, United States, Veteran's benefits
by PharmacyChecker.com | Aug 1, 2011 | Advocacy, Saving Money on Prescription Drugs
A study released last week by the Pew Foundation finds that “from 2005 to 2009, inflation-adjusted median wealth fell by 66% among Hispanic households”. The study goes on to say, “The typical Hispanic household had $6,325 in wealth and the typical white household had $113,149.”
In light of this information, we’re certain that our Spanish version of How to Save Money on Prescription Medications, Safely – A Consumer Guide, or Guía al Consumidor, is needed now more than ever to ensure the U.S. Hispanic community’s access to safe and affordable medication. With health costs ever rising, safe saving strategies are a lifeline for many, especially those hit hardest by the current economy.
Tagged with: consumer guide, economy, Guía al Consumidor, Hispanic, Pew Foundation, United States
by PharmacyChecker.com | Jul 13, 2011 | Saving Money on Prescription Drugs
We’re pleased to announce that we have translated our Guide called How To Save Money on Prescription Drugs, Safely – A Consumer Guide into Spanish, expanding access to our online pharmacy savings information to the Spanish-speaking community. Along with our PharmacyChecker Spanish homepage, and About Online Pharmacies page – Farmacias virtuales y de entrega por correo: Lo que usted debe saber – the Guide can be an exceedingly valuable resource for uninsured and under-insured Spanish-speaking people who live in the United States.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 14.3% of American Hispanics did not take their prescribed medication in 2009 due to cost.The situation is much worse for Hispanic non-citizens, 29 percent who said they did not take their medication due to cost. These dire statistics prove that greater access to affordable medication is most acutely needed by the Hispanic community. We believe that our Guide can help the Hispanic community better access the medicines they need safely.
For more information on our Spanish-Language Consumer Guide, see our recent Press Release – and access the Guide itself, published on our English and Spanish homepages PharmacyChecker.com and PharmacyChecker.com/default_sp.asp.
Tagged with: affordability, community, consumer guide, Hispanic, Latinos, Online Pharmacies, prescription drugs, press release, safety, save money, Spanish, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, United States
by PharmacyChecker.com | May 24, 2011 | Drug Prices, Saving Money on Prescription Drugs
Generic prescriptions are on the rise, as doctors are prescribing them, and pharmacies are filling them, now more than ever. We recently wrote that the percentage of generic scripts being dispensed rose to 78% last year. But the popularity for generics – attributed to the significantly lower price tag compared to brand name drugs – is expected to take on a whole new meaning, as the patents for some blockbuster brand name drugs expire this year; this is also known as the “Patent Cliff”.
The biggest prize, Pfizer’s Lipitor (for Cholesterol), the number one selling drug in the U.S., goes generic later this year (November 2011); and Plavix (a blood thinner) and Actos (for Diabetes) will follow (May 2012 and August 2012, respectively). As patents run out, these and other popular prescription drugs will be far more affordable in the U.S., since generic drug prices tend to be lower here than in other countries. (more…)
Tagged with: Actos, blood thinner, brand name drugs, Canada, Celebrex, Cholesterol, consumer guide, Costco.com, diabetes, generic prescriptions, Lipitor, Patent Cliff, Pfizer, Plavix, Seroquel, Simvastatin, U.S. pharmacies, United States, Zocor
