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I did a search on this subject and didn't see anything close. Hopefully I'm not creating a redundant thread. I'm not even sure this is posted in the correct place.
I've tried figuring this out before by asking this question in two pharmacies - CVS and Walgreens. I hit brick walls in both places. I'd like to be able to do cost comparisons BEFORE filling a prescription. Both pharmacies insisted the only way they could tell me the cost was to put the prescription through and fill it. This means the prescription is used and if the cost is too high in one store, I can't use it in another obviously. What the heck do people expect me to do - ask the doctor for two or three prescriptions for the same thing? Seriously, I don't see an option. I use Humana or the local county discount prescription card.
Contacting Humana or going online yielded the same result - nothing. Humana also doesn't cover most of the few prescriptions I get but the cost comparison is still important.
For instance, if I put in my zip code and the only drug I take, 20 mg lisinopril, I get costs between $3.60 and $9.99. If I put in the steroid eye drops I had to use after surgery, prednisolone acetate, I get prices between $16.76 and $75.00. They list about 8 chain pharmacies, including Costco (which is called "Membership warehouse: name cannot be shown").
The problem is that those prices don't include insurance and each plan has its own tiers. But it is possible to go up on my insurance company's website and see what tier a drug is on and what the cost will be after deductible.
Thanks, PNW-type-gal . It's better than what I have now. It's actually pretty cool. Since Humana doesn't cover
much, the insurance doesn't matter. Yes, I know about tiers and for the few things I take at this time, little to nothing
is covered by it. It was the cheapest plan I could find knowing it would be acceptable for now.
Are you looking for the cash price? You should be able to get that without having to get it filled, but you need to tell them you want the cash price. You can also ask if the drug is on one of their 'club' or 'savings' plans (like all those $4 drugs at walmart) Trying to get a comparison on something covered by insurance is a pain because the pharmacy can't give you a price until they run it through your insurance company.
Are you looking for the cash price? You should be able to get that without having to get it filled, but you need to tell them you want the cash price. You can also ask if the drug is on one of their 'club' or 'savings' plans (like all those $4 drugs at walmart) Trying to get a comparison on something covered by insurance is a pain because the pharmacy can't give you a price until they run it through your insurance company.
The link provided by PNW shows comparable cash (ie, non-insurance) prices for medications in a given locale. You type in the drug, your zip code and they give you the prices for that drug from various pharmacies located in that area.
Especially for the newer/more expensive drugs pharmaceutical companies often have discount cards or offer assistance in paying for those drugs. They often do so through the prescribing doctor's office, so you would notify your physician that you need that help. Or often a drug is so expensive they know it'll be out of reach for most people, so they'll offer you that help. Quite often physician's offices have discount or even pre-paid cards for various drugs they prescribe, so it's worth it to check with them in the event one might need help with paying for prescriptions.
My mother ( age 88) has no prescription drug plan- she couldn't be bothered to look for and sign up for a Medicare Part D, or other plan that included one, despite our telling her about and offering to help her. She figured as long as she could get by with freebies(samples) from friends who worked in docs offices, sticking to generic drugs that were either free or low cost at Walmart or somewhere else, who needed insurance for drugs? The samples aren't forthcoming anymore, but her "plan" has worked pretty well over the years. But when she had cataract surgery last year, she needed the eyedrops they prescribe for pre- and post-cataract surgery, and without the insurance I'm sure those drops ( three sets each for both eyes) would have cost her $1500+. But the surgery coordinator told us of a pharmacy ( this one was in Bradenton, FL, I'm sure there are others) that dispensed opthalmic prescriptions exclusively, and the charges for these drops would be less than most insurance co-pays. So they called in her prescriptions, my mother contacted the pharmacy with her payment arrangement, and they mailed her the prescriptions. The total cost to her was around $115- which was quite a bit less than the insurance co-pays I had had for the same eyedrops when I had cataract surgery.
I did a search on this subject and didn't see anything close. Hopefully I'm not creating a redundant thread. I'm not even sure this is posted in the correct place.
I've tried figuring this out before by asking this question in two pharmacies - CVS and Walgreens. I hit brick walls in both places. I'd like to be able to do cost comparisons BEFORE filling a prescription. Both pharmacies insisted the only way they could tell me the cost was to put the prescription through and fill it. This means the prescription is used and if the cost is too high in one store, I can't use it in another obviously. What the heck do people expect me to do - ask the doctor for two or three prescriptions for the same thing? Seriously, I don't see an option. I use Humana or the local county discount prescription card.
Contacting Humana or going online yielded the same result - nothing. Humana also doesn't cover most of the few prescriptions I get but the cost comparison is still important.
Thanks for your responses, folks.
If you have used your Humana site and know it is not on their formulary (so not covered) tell the pharmacy that. They are probably assuming you have insurance and that insurance will pay. They most certainly CAN check the price before filling it, but you do need to give them your insurance information, etc. Without that, no, they can't tell you the exact price because each company has different negotiated prices with the pharmacies and different formularies. Call the pharmacy and ask for their cash price since this is a non-formulary drug for your plan.
Hum, guess I;m the lucky one with my insurance. I can go to their pharmacy medication website, enter my information, enter the medication and it will return the current prices of the three lowest pharmacies (actual cost and after insurance pays) in my area as well as the average price others paid in this area, as well as what it would cost if I used their mail prescription service (if available). Based on the amount I pay for the employee's prescription medication plan, the company can afford to provide this service to the members.
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