When a Bargain is NOT a Bargain
I take drugs.
Several drugs in fact. Due to various health issues, I am dependent upon pharmacies to process my prescriptions. One of the options I have through my insurance, is to have them filled by mail order through Medco. My insurance website compares the cost of my drugs purchased at the local drug store to discounted price of getting it from Medco. Generally there is a $20-$30 difference when ordering a 90 day supply.
However...
What is not mentioned is that tier 3 drugs cannot be dispensed more than one month at a time. So a 3 month supply turns into 1/3 the cost each month plus 3 times the postage in a 3 month period. So say, if a one month supply of a drug is normally $60 at the drugstore:
A 3 month supply at drugstore is $180
A 3 month supply done monthly with Medco is $150 plus postage ($8 per/month) is $174
Here's the additional kicker...Medco is S-L-O-W in processing prescriptions. In fact, it has taken up to 14 days before I finally received my script from them. Now I don't know this for sure mind you, but i suspect that they are intentionally slow, to justify promoting their "Expedited Service" which is $14 postage.
A 3 month supply done monthly with Medco at $150 plus 3x $14 = $192 and even though it is expedited shipping, it still takes 5 days for the meds to arrive at your door.
Two of my five prescriptions are tier 3 drugs. While I CAN get 90 day supplies of the other drugs, I cannot for these two. I can afford the time to wait for the 90 day scripts to be filled, but not for the tier 3's. With the cost of shipping and handling, the so called discount for mail order is a fallacy.
So let's see...
$60 p/mo with no hassle...
$58 p/mo with long wait...
$64 p/mo with shorter wait...
Which one would YOU pick?
Sometimes a bargain is NOT a bargain.
Several drugs in fact. Due to various health issues, I am dependent upon pharmacies to process my prescriptions. One of the options I have through my insurance, is to have them filled by mail order through Medco. My insurance website compares the cost of my drugs purchased at the local drug store to discounted price of getting it from Medco. Generally there is a $20-$30 difference when ordering a 90 day supply.
However...
What is not mentioned is that tier 3 drugs cannot be dispensed more than one month at a time. So a 3 month supply turns into 1/3 the cost each month plus 3 times the postage in a 3 month period. So say, if a one month supply of a drug is normally $60 at the drugstore:
A 3 month supply at drugstore is $180
A 3 month supply done monthly with Medco is $150 plus postage ($8 per/month) is $174
Here's the additional kicker...Medco is S-L-O-W in processing prescriptions. In fact, it has taken up to 14 days before I finally received my script from them. Now I don't know this for sure mind you, but i suspect that they are intentionally slow, to justify promoting their "Expedited Service" which is $14 postage.
A 3 month supply done monthly with Medco at $150 plus 3x $14 = $192 and even though it is expedited shipping, it still takes 5 days for the meds to arrive at your door.
Two of my five prescriptions are tier 3 drugs. While I CAN get 90 day supplies of the other drugs, I cannot for these two. I can afford the time to wait for the 90 day scripts to be filled, but not for the tier 3's. With the cost of shipping and handling, the so called discount for mail order is a fallacy.
So let's see...
$60 p/mo with no hassle...
$58 p/mo with long wait...
$64 p/mo with shorter wait...
Which one would YOU pick?
Sometimes a bargain is NOT a bargain.