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Rx Relief: How to Save Up to 80% on Prescription Drugs

Rx Relief: How to Save Up to 80% on Prescription Drugs

The average American filled 12 prescriptions last year, according to the IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics, and as a result the pharmaceutical industry grossed $329 billion. (You're welcome, Pfizer.)

Minimize your pain at the pharmacy counter by taking these steps when your next script is written:

1. Use coupons. For expensive prescriptions, you can save 50% or more this way. There are a lot of ways to get your hands on prescription coupons, but start by asking your pharmacist. Call ahead or ask at the counter; the pharmacist may have some on hand or be able to tell you where to find them—most likely online. If you want to search yourself, try the drug company’s website first, then check the website of your pharmacy.

2. Try mail order. Mail-order pharmacies save you money by skipping the bricks-and-mortar middleman and sending the drug directly to you, typically in 90-day quantities. Your health insurer may work with a specific mail-order house, and often you'll get better pricing by going this route. Alternately, your prescribing doctor's office may have a preferred pharmacy they work with regularly, so inquire when the prescription is written.

3. Ask your doctor about pill splitting Most drugs come in more than one dosage, but aren’t priced on the same scale as the dosages. This means that, per milligram, higher dosages of the same drug are often cheaper—and you could save money by purchasing double doses of your prescriptions and halving them. Not every drug should be split, so consult with your doctor first. If you’re given the go-ahead, make sure to purchase a pill splitter from a drug store to ensure consistent and equal dosing.

4. Opt for generics If there’s a generic version of your brand-name drug available and you’re not taking it, you could be wasting a lot of money—on average, generics are 80% to 85% cheaper than their brand-name counterparts. Contrary to the myth that generic drugs are held to different standards than brand-name drugs, there is no significant difference between them. Generic drugs are allowed to differ from brand-name drugs only insofar as appearance and inactive ingredients. By law, medication dose, safety, quality and instructions must be the same. Stores have gotten into price wars over generic drugs: Target now charges $4 for hundreds of medicines, for example, and Meijer and Publix are among those that offer some drugs gratis, which is why you may want to...

5. Compare pharmacies. Drug prices can vary widely between pharmacies, even locally, so you may want to shop around before simply going to the nearest drug store. Websites like GoodRx and LowestMed compare pharmacies within zip codes for specific medications, and even offer coupons and drug information. You may be surprised to find that some drugs vary by $50 or more for the same supply and dosage. In that case, the cost of convenience may just be too high.