Prescription drugs can only be purchased at U.S. pharmacies with a prescription from a U.S. doctor. On the bottle label, information such as patient information, drug information, dosage, shelf life, expiry date of prescription, number of doses, pharmacy information, doctor and pharmacist name, and phone number will be displayed. There will be Rx # (Rx is the abbreviation for Prescription) on the bottle/box of prescription drugs, which is the patient’s prescription number. If the medicine that has been taken multiple times will be marked with the number of times of taking medicine (Refilled Times) in the lower-left corner, it means that the doctor’s prescription can be filled X times repeatedly within the specified time. Consultation fee for re–treatment. In addition, you can also call the pharmacy and tell your prescription number (Rx#), and the pharmacy can prepare the medicine directly, saving waiting time.
Tips for Prescribing Drugs Without Insurance
Make good use of Generic drugs:
Generic drugs refer to drugs produced by other manufacturers using the same formula and approved by the FDA to have the same efficacy after the patent of the original brand name drug expires, and because manufacturers do not need to invest huge amounts of money Because of research and development and testing, Generic drugs are much cheaper than the originally patented drugs (Brand Name), and their prices are usually 10%-50% of the Brand Name prescription drugs. Don’t forget to ask your pharmacist to find Generic substitutes for Brand Name medicines for you when you get your medicine. In addition, the drug price comparison website GoodRx also provides price comparisons for Generic drugs and Brand Name drugs.
Consult with the doctor:
If the medicine prescribed by the doctor belongs to the category that is not reimbursed by insurance, you can report to the doctor and ask the doctor to re-prescribe and choose the same medicine that can be reimbursed by insurance. If you need to use the medicine for a long time, it is normal to take the medicine every 30 days, but the insurance copay has to pay every time you buy the medicine. If you can, consider taking a 90-day amount at a time, which is equivalent to saving two months of copay money. Some medicines can be cut in the form of tablets to reduce the dose without affecting the efficacy of the medicine. If you need to take long-term medication, you can discuss with your doctor to prescribe a double-dose version of the medicine, cut the tablet in half and divide it into two pieces at home. Pill cutters are available on amazon.
Drug Discount Cards: States also offer free Discount Card Programs that you can find online.
Free Drug Program:
Supermarkets and pharmacies in some areas will provide some free common drugs, such as the commonly used antibiotic Amlodipine, a blood pressure drug Lisinopril, diabetes drug Metformin, etc.
Discount plans of drug companies:
Some drug companies may offer discount plans. Before picking up drugs, you may wish to log in to the official websites of several well-known drug companies to check whether there are such plans.
Compare prices between several different pharmacies:
To get the medicine at the least cost, you can go to different pharmacies to compare prices, or you can search for relevant discount information on the pharmacy’s official website and pay attention to special offers. At the same time, some pharmacies will have some low-priced drugs and some drugs that can be collected for free. Friends who need it can search on relevant websites. However, the disadvantage of this is that the medicines processed at low prices are often not what they need, and it is difficult to match the needed medicines. Drug Transfer Service or Price Matching Service: If you find that the price of the drug in another pharmacy is cheaper than the current drug price at this pharmacy, you can apply for a free drug transfer service (Transfer). Some pharmacies not only offer switching benefits (such as additional discounts) to encourage people to switch to their pharmacies but also offer price matching services (Price Matching) to ensure that the same drug is priced at the new pharmacy and is available for patients. The original pharmacy prices are the same.
Walmart’s Generic Drug Discount Program:
When you buy a drug at Walmart, whether you have medical insurance or not, as long as there are drugs listed on Walmart’s Generic Drug Discount Program, you only need to pay $4 to buy a 30-day supply. At the same time, this preferential plan includes much common diabetes and psychiatric drugs that need to be taken for a long time. So, if a drug you’re taking is on the discount plan, you can switch to Walmart to save money. Finally, you can ask a pharmacist to help confirm whether the drug you are taking is Brand Name or Generic and whether there is a discount plan.
