10 Tips for Saving Money on Prescription Costs

Written By Debra Gordon on December 13, 2021

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  Save Money on Prescription Costs

  The good news about prescription drugs is that their overall cost is actually dropping, with more than half of all prescriptions carrying a price tag lower than $5. The bad news is that our out-of-pocket costs are rising as more of us have high-deductible health plans and cost sharing. Indeed, if you have two or more chronic conditions, your annual out-of-pocket costs at the pharmacy may top $1,000. It's worthwhile to seek out ways to reduce what you spend on medications.
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  1. Get healthier.

  Are you taking medication for lifestyle conditions like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or diabetes? There's another way to manage your health. Take steps to exercise, change your diet, and lose weight. You'll be amazed at how much less medication you may need.
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  2. Tell your doctor what you can afford.

  The last thing doctors consider when prescribing a drug is price. Yet you can often get the same benefits from a less expensive medication. You just have to ask. Unfortunately, only about one in five patients does just that.
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  3. Ask for generic.

  About 80% of drugs today are generic. They cost up to 85% less than brand-name drugs yet have virtually the same active ingredients as the brand-name medication.
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  4. Request a 90-day prescription.

  You may have lower co-payments with a single 90-day supply than with three 30-day prescriptions. Of course, this only works for maintenance drugs you take on an ongoing basis.
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  5. Shop around and check drug discount sites.

  A Consumer Reports investigation surveyed pharmacies to compare prices for five top-selling generic prescription drugs and found a 447% difference (about $750) between the highest- and lowest-priced stores.
  
  One good way to do this is by using drug discount sites like GoodRx or SingleCare. You can search the name of your prescription and compare prices across popular pharmacies. The trick is that many of these sites require you to pay in cash and not use your health insurance. Depending on your health plan, this may or may not be advantageous.
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  6. Join a warehouse club.

  A Consumer Reports survey of the cost of five commonly used generic drugs found the lowest prices at Costco.
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  7. Check out a mail-order pharmacy.

  Depending on your health plan, it may cost you less out of pocket. But check to be sure; retail pharmacies have become quite aggressive when it comes to competing with mail order, and you may get a better deal at your local drugstore.
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  8. Give your prescription drugs a periodic checkup.

  If you're taking one or more maintenance medications, such as for high blood pressure or diabetes, check with your primary care doctor every six months or so to see if you still need them.
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  9. Look for coupons.

  Drug manufacturers commonly offer coupons and patient assistance programs designed to reduce or even eliminate your co-payment for medications. However, they aren't allowed to offer them to people covered under Medicare or Medicaid programs.
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  10. Follow your medication’s rules.

  You might be tempted to save money by skipping doses, buying drugs from another country, or forgoing medication altogether in favor of alternative therapies. Don't—you could put your health at risk. In the long run, this could mean even more medications, not to mention other medical costs.

10 Tips for Saving Money on Prescription Costs

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