Why does on pill cost $0.10 and the other cost $2.55?
Mrs. Critter has been taking a medication for high blood pressure and chest pains. It cost about $2.55 per pill. She takes one pill per day. We get 90 pills at a time, a 3 month supply. We have been buying the brand name drug. She prefers that over the generic brand.
It is time for another 90 pills. I decided to check with our pharmacy to see what it would cost if we switched to the generic. They told me it would cost a little less than $9.00 for 90 pills.
WTF?!?
I said, "Are you sure"? They said "Yes". I said, "You are telling me my choices are paying $230 or paying $9"? They said, "Yes".
I find this price difference mind-boggling. How can one pharmaceutical company charge $230 and another one charge $9 for the same drug? I don't care what their "research and development" costs are. Hell, most of it was probably funded by the government anyway. The pharmaceutical companies are spending all their money annoying me in the evening with drug commercials, but that is a whole other rant!
I will let you guess which one I bought today.
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Wrong
ReplyDeleteThey are not spending all their money on commercials.
They are spending all their BIG money paying off our politicians. :-)
Well, that too. One buys off the media and the other buys off the lawmakers.
ReplyDeleteSuch a deal!
I was in the same position Jerry. My BP non-generic pills cost 254.00 for a 90 day supply. I had a bad reaction to a generic once and never went back, that is until I found my self with no insurance. So I tried the generic and it works fine! All those years afraid for nothing! I hate to admit something good about a pharma co. doing something nice, but my pharmacy got me enrolled in Pfizer and friends and I get a HUGE discount now. Last month my 2 scripts, 90 day supply each, cost 33.00 instead of 100.00.
ReplyDeleteI am still amazed that Medicare is prevented from negotiating with the drug companies. I thought that was something that Obama was going to change.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if it could be done by Executive Order?
If Generic is the exact same I know you switched.. but if you read up on it; and the coating or lining or whatever might cause side effects I'm sure you did not.
ReplyDeleteI always take the generic if they have it for the medicine under my ex-husband's plan for antibiotics or whatever for my son. (rarely needed but a big different in the co-payment .. I think 5 instead of 15.00 ) Gosh its been so long since he or I needed medicine I forgot the prices.