The price of generic drugs can vary widely from one pharmacy to the next.
As the popularity of this e-mail attests, the fact that one can find a wide disparity in drug prices from one pharmacy to the next was apparently surprising news to many people. And there's probably some truth to the notion that because we tend to view generic drugs as great 'money-saving' alternatives to brand drugs, we often don't consider that the mark-up on generics can vary widely from one retailer to the next.The basic facts laid out in the message quoted above are true. Steve Wilson, a reporter with WXYZ-TV in Detroit, conducted an investigative study into the cost of generic drugs at various pharmacies and other retail drug outlets and found quite a disparity between the highest and lowest pricescharged for certain generic drugs. For example, the Prescription Drug Price Comparison Chart available in conjunction with Wilson's report shows that a one-month supply of Fluoxetine HCL (the generic for Prozac), which wholesales for $1.48, varied in retail price from a high of $92.24 to a low of $9.69 just within the Detroit area.Comparison shopping applies to generic drugs just as much as it does to food, clothing, DVDs, automobiles, or any other product. Those willing to do some hunting around get the best prices, and many drug comparison sites are available on the web to help consumers compare the costs of various drugs at different retail outlets before submitting their prescriptions (although medical insurance or HMO restrictions may limit which pharmacies a covered patient can use). Price differences between pharmacies can't necessarily be chalked up to nothing more than mere greed, however - some pharmacies offer additional levels of service (such as staying open 24 hours a day) and have to recoup the costs of those additional services by charging higher prices.Although we can't guarantee that Costco always has the lowest prices on generic drugs, it is generally true that their pharmacy will fill prescriptions for non-members (but be prepared to pay by cash or ATM card rather than check).Later versions of this message had the following table added to the beginning:BIG RIP-OFF The Cost of Prescription Drugs Did you ever wonder how much it costs a drug company for the active ingredient in prescription medications? Some people think it must cost a lot, since many drugs sell for more than $2.00 per tablet. We did a search of offshore chemical synthesizers that supply the active ingredients found in drugs approved by the FDA. As we have revealed in past issues of Life Extension, a significant percentage of drugs sold in the United States contain active ingredients made in other countries. In our independent investigation of how much profit drug companies really make, we obtained the actual price of active ingredients used in some of the most popular drugs sold in America. The chart below speaks for itself. Brand Name of Drug Consumer Price/100 tabs Cost of General Active Ingredients Percent Markup Celebrex 100 mg $130.27 $0.60 21,712% Claritin 10 mg $215.17 $0.71 30,306% Keflex 250 mg $157.39 $1.88 8,372% Lipitor 20 mg $272.37 $5.80 4,696% Norvasc 10 mg $188.29 $0.14 134,493% Paxil 20 mg $220.27 $7.60 2,898% Prevacid 30 mg $44.77 $1.01 34,136% Prilosec 20 mg $360.97 $0.52 69,417% Prozac 20 mg $247.47 $0.11 224,973% Tenormin 50 mg $104.47 $0.13 80,362% Vasotec 10 mg $102.37 $0.20 51,185% Xanax 1mg $136.79 $0.024 569,958% Zestril 20 mg $89.89 $3.20 2,809% Zithromax 600mg $1,482.19 $18.78 7,892% Zocor 40mg $350.27 $8.63 4,059% Zoloft 50mg $206.87 $1.75 11,821%This chart is of dubious accuracy and has little relevance (other than an inflammatory one), as far more goes into the retail pricing of drugs than the raw cost of their active ingredients. Pharmaceutical companies expend money on the research and development costs of creating the drugs, plus the overhead costs of manufacturing, marketing, and shipping them; as well, pharmacies must sell drugs for more than their wholesale prices in order to cover the overhead costs of store operations (including pharmacists' salaries).Additional information: Markups on Generic Prescription Drugs (WXYZ-TV)
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