Thursday, October 16, 2008

Cost of Prescriptions Varies Widely

The Pittsburge Post-Gazette reports Cost of prescriptions varies widely

"What Ray Catalano wants to know is: Why did the same prescription cost him $46 at one pharmacy and $557 at another? And why doesn't his insurer -- which ultimately pays 80 percent of the bill -- seem to care?"

"Mr. Catalano, a retired California University of Pennsylvania biology and environmental sciences professor, paid $557 in December at Rite Aid in Canonsburg for a month's supply of Zofran, an anti-nausea drug, following his hospitalization for a heart attack....So he shopped around and was surprised at what he learned: CVS was charging about $420 for 30 four-milligram generic Zofran tablets; Walgreens' cost was $410; and Wal-Mart charged $110. Then he tried Jeffreys Drug Store, an independent pharmacy in Canonsburg. The cost to fill his generic Zofran prescription at Jeffreys: $46.58."

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