The Rx Problem
Problems with affording prescription drugs because of their high costs in America today is no secret.
Prescriptions of all kinds–generic as well as brand name–are frequently priced out of affordability for many Americans. It is estimated that 37% of all prescriptions aren’t filled due to high prices, sadly, within 6 months, 22% of those individuals are hospitalized.
According to the Georgetown University Health Policy Institute, adult Americans pay 48% of prescription drug costs out of their pockets, those aged 65-79 pay 56% out of pocket.
How can that be? Employer Group Health Plans, ObamaCare, Medicare, and Medicaid all include coverage for prescription medications, typically by way of Prescription Drug Cards (we’ll call them traditional), that are supposed to make prescription purchases affordable..
The answer is:
- High deductible healthcare plans that will not pay for prescriptions until the deductible is satisfied;
- Much lower deductible plans that still require prescriptions to be paid out of pocket until the deductible is satisfied;
- Prescriptions that are excluded by design;
- Gaps in coverage, like the donut hole in Medicare prescription plans; and
- Prescription drug plans that simply have high copayments.
Even with the attention of public policymakers, the problem continues to grow.
The Solution
Prescription Discount Cards
A number of prescription drug discount cards have evolved, with varying degrees of success in closing the shortcomings or gaps noted among the traditional plans above.
However, these cards should be considered a resource, not a replacement for traditional plans.
Simply shop the cost of medications with traditional plans by comparing the cost to prescription discount cards. You’ll be surprised that prescription discount cards will sometimes save you money. Particularly in those instances where the traditional plan excludes a prescription–something that rarely occurs with prescription discount cards..
Never pay to obtain or use a prescription discount card! There are numerous free cards that you can discover through a quick internet search. If you are interested, please contact me for a plan I have thoroughly researched.
Canadian Pharmacies
During the past 15 years, Canadian pharmacies have become known for reducing the costs of prescription medications, even though consumers cannot use ANY prescription card in those purchases.
The pharmacies are most notable for reducing the cost of brand name medications. You may discover that paying the full cost at a Canadian pharmacy is less than the copayment for a brand name drug in the US.
The reason Canadian pharmacies can offer such reduced pricing is that the patent laws that protect pharmaceutical companies from lower price competition in the US do not apply outside the borders of the US.
Generally, Canadian pharmacies cannot ship medications with a narcotic component, nor medications that require refrigeration into the US. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to get any relief for those medications.
There are many Canadian pharmacies that can be researched on the internet, but my personal recommendation is PharmStore. I’ve referred many people to that site without the first complaint over the past 10 years. I strongly recommend them for brand name drugs.
I am comfortable recommending them because of the testimonials from many people whom I have referred to the site. Also, PharmStore is approved by the Canadian government as a participating pharmacy in the Canadian healthcare system.
Need Extra Help?
My 46 years in the healthcare insurance business has made me aware of the need for additional resources to help consumers contend with the ever increasing high cost of prescription drugs. I don’t claim to be any smarter than the next agent, but I have learned a lot.
I do hope you have learned something here that will help. If you have any questions, or if I can clear up anything noted on this page, please feel free to contact me.
My email address is kenbrown@floridamedicarespecialists.com and my phone number is (407) 497-6287.
