Disposing of your unused, unwanted, or expired medications has many benefits.  It can protect your family from unwanted ingestion, often times in the case of a child. It also keeps the medications out of landfills and the water system, which often occurs when medications are flushed down the toilet.

Do your part to help keep your family, and society safe.  If you have any questions, call the DEA at 1-800-882-9539.

Each year, non-compliance to prescription medication costs the American economy thousands of lives and hundreds of billions of dollars. In the past, we’ve talked about the large percentage of patients not filling their medications.  This weeks focus is on those that take the initiative to fill the prescription, but then make decisions that are not in line with their doctor to stretch out the costs over a greater period of time.  This is a problem, because many chronic disease states (such as atherosclerosis, or high-cholesterol) are asymptomatic meaning a person may not feel any effect in their day to day life.  Eventually, however, a large and potentially life threatening event can take place.

Our recommendation to combat the financial strain is to again be a proactive consumer and advocate for your own health.  If you truly doubt your diagnosis, get a second opinion, but don’t skimp on your medication therapy.  It could have fatal consequences for you or a loved one.   If your paying more than you can currently afford, there is help available!  Contact one of the pharmacists at Rx Savings Solutions for more information and help from healthcare professionals who really care!

1.  Buy a good bed!  People are quick to spend big money on cars, jewelry, and other flashy items, but often skimp on their research and money spent on their bed. Although most people will probably never see your mattress, get a good one. You’ll enjoy its rewards every day.

2.  Practice good sleep hygiene.  Think about what you do before bed:  do you eat? exercise? watch t.v. or work on a brightly lit computer screen?  These are all things that could affect your sleep cycle.  Try spending 10-15 minutes before bed meditating, reading, or just letting go of that stress from your every day life.

3.  If the above two don’t do you any good, perhaps there is a medication that can help.  Sleep medications (like most other medications), vary widely in price from one to the next, and from one pharmacy to the next.  If you’re doctor decides this is necessary, get in touch with one of the pharmacists at Rx Savings Solutions to help locate your best bang for your buck.

A price drop is expected to be seen once the generic Boniva hits pharmacy shelves, which should be in just a few days if they have already.  Larger discounting can be expected in about 6 months, when all manufacturers are allowed to enter the market with their generic versions.

As the body experiences these allergens, it mounts an attack of sorts. Mucous production in the form of a runny nose and tearing eyes are common, as are sneezing and inflamed breathing passages. For most of us, we care less about the process, and more about feeling no good. But we’re in luck, there are some options for relief!

Treatment Options:
1. Over the counter antihistamines like Claritin (loratadine), Zyrtec (cetirizine), and Allegra (fexofenadine) all work to stop the histamine reaction from occurring and offer great relief for many. They are non-drowsy and come in a 24 hour formulation for once a day dosing. Their approximate monthly pricing for 30 pills follows:

Claritin-$25.00
Zyrtec-$15.00
Allegra-$18.00
Generic Claritin (loratadine)-$10.00
Generic Zyrtec (cetirizine)-$10.00

2. If the antihistamines don’t help, consider talking with your doctor about a low dose oral steroid to calm down the inflammation. Most oral steroids are available for pennies a day.

We encourage all of you suffering from seasonal allergies to take control of your symptoms early this allergy season, and enjoy the beautiful weather and scenery that come with Spring!

Although you may notice a slight price drop, it could take another 6 months or so to see a significant decrease in price.  If you are interested in other cost saving alternatives, our professionals are always willing to help.  Just call 1-800-268-4476 or email us at info@rxsavingsllc.com.

1. Check with your pharmacist to see if the medications you would like to split are time released, and whether or not they can be safely split.

2. Talk with your doctor about obtaining a strong dose that can be split in half to save money.

3. Buy a $5 pill splitter at your local pharmacy of choice. This is an important step, and should not be compromised by using a razor blade or kitchen knife. Spend the $5 to ensure a safe procedure and much more accurate split.

4. Only split 1 pill at a time (versus the whole quantity). Take these two pills on consecutive days to ensure you are receiving the exact dosage every couple of days and avoid negative effects from a less than perfect split.

Thats it! Splitting your drug bill in half can be that easy!

If you have questions regarding this post, or on other ways to save on your prescription medication, email one of the pharmacists at pharmacist@rxsavingsllc.com for more details.

Happy Saving!

So what is this SPF number you keep seeing on sunscreen bottles? It stands for “Sun Protection Factor” and is simply a way to measure how much protection you are getting for your skin. It is a bit confusing, however, because an SPF of 60 is not twice as strong as an SPF 30 which blocks approximately 97% of UVB rays.

When buying sunscreen, there are some important notes to remember:

1. UVB rays cause pain and redness, UVA do not. However, UVA rays do cause skin damage and can cause cancer. Make sure your sunscreen protects for both!

2. An SPF of 30 blocks 97% of the suns harmful UVB rays and will protect you 30 times longer than going without it.

3. Creams, lotions, and sprays are all available. Pick the one you’re most likely to use, and reapply.

Our recommendation: Find a sunscreen to your liking that you are most likely to apply often with an SPF of at least 30, and be sure it has both UVA and UVB protection. If you’re in doubt, ask your pharmacist for help. And as always, you can email one of our experts at pharmacist@rxsavingsllc.com.

So what gives, why does Nexium command such a large price?  The answer is their marketing campaign.  Astra Zeneca, the maker of Nexium, has been launching an all out attack to suck up market share ever since it hit the market.  They’ve done a good job too, with their sales representatives getting many Physicians on board, and a slough of commercials, newspaper, and magazine ads directed toward consumers.  But ultimately, the cost of all of the marketing is passed on to you, the consumer!

A few things you can do to combat these high costs follow:
1.  If you have insurance, find out what comparable drug is covered by your insurance.  Don’t forget to ask for the price.  You can obtain this information by calling the number located on the back of your insurance card.
2.  Consider a cost saving alternative recommended by one of the pharmacists at Rx Savings Solutions.
3.  If you’re still not sold on the idea of switching medications and have to stick with your Nexium, consider signing up for The Purple Plus Savings Card on the Nexium website which is listed below.
https://www.purplepill.com/tools/purple-plus-savings-card.aspx

Many people often wonder why the same prescription drug sold in many foreign countries can be so much cheaper than it is when bought in the United States.  There are a few reasons, but the major reason is due to the process it must go through in the U.S. to get approval by the Food and Drug Administration.  To quickly many consumers give this a bad rap, charging an increase in costs for the same product.  But the safety measures the FDA takes are in many ways invaluable!  Afterall, your safety and the safety of loved ones is what ultimatley matters.

When you go to the pharmacy, you have access not only to medications but to healthcare professionals who are trained very well to help guide you.  At Rx Savings Solutions, we believe there are many ways to reduce your prescription drug costs, but importation of non-regulated medications is not one of them!  This country is blessed with many resources, and our healthcare system ranks high on the list.  And although it is far from perfect, outsourcing isn’t the answer.  Many people will put premium gasoline in their car, but skimp on the food (and medications) they put in their body.  When it comes to your health, and the things you ingest, we recommend always using premium!