Welcome to RxSavings Solutions

An Easy (and Free) Way to Dispose of Unwanted Medications

Michael Rea, PharmD — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 16:00:08 +0000

Due to the large demand, the Drug Enforcement Agency, or DEA, recently began sponsoring days where citizens can dispose of their unwanted/expired/unsafe medications at sites all across the country. This has been a highly successful program with a great deal of positive feedback. On April 28th, they will be doing it again. Thousands of pharmacies will participate, with specific ones posted on this website in March: http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_disposal/takeback/index.html. Aside from this event being great for keeping medications out of the wrong hands, or into our water systems, it is also a free way to dispose of them. Other options include disposal bags that you can buy in some retail pharmacy chains for a fee. With these bags comes a paid postage envelope straight to an incineration facility. Do your part and participate where you can. Our water supply and the health of … Continue reading →

Affordable Care Act will make Pharma Companies Disclose payments to Physicians

Michael Rea, PharmD — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 16:00:36 +0000

As part of the affordable care act enacted in 2010, pharmaceutical companies will be required to disclose payments to physicians who are not their direct employees. This will be done to promote transparency for consumers, who ultimately end up footing the bill by paying for brand name drugs when a less expensive therapeutic alternative exists and is appropriate. To back up this claim, it is worth noting that Pharma Companies as a whole spend on average 11% of their revenue on research and development, while spending 23% of their revenue on marketing, which is where doctor payments in a variety of forms (direct payment, trips, dinners, etc.) would fall. Physicians often make the mistake of prescribing a more expensive brand name drug unknowingly, but will now be held more accountable by consumers. Our advice: Be involved in your healthcare decisions, … Continue reading →

Common Myth: Insurance Copays are the Cheapest Option

Michael Rea, PharmD — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 01:00:38 +0000

Nearly one third of all prescriptions written in the United States are never filled, largely due to cost. Too often, people (both insured and uninsured) are under the impression that filling their prescription medicines will cost huge amounts of money, and don’t do so as a result. In many cases, this is false, and may actually end up costing you more down the road. Today’s prescription insurance structure is a complicated maze of different copays/coinsurance, certain drugs not being covered because they are not “preferred,” and less coverage for more money. Meanwhile, pharmacy insurance companies (othewise known as PBM’s or Pharmacy Benefit Managers) are making more money than ever by dictating what medication your doctor can prescribe you based on what medications they can get the best deal on from manufacturers. By sharing our prescription medication report with your doctor, lower cost alternatives … Continue reading →

Generics Coming in 2012

Michael Rea, PharmD — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 16:00:50 +0000

2012 promises to be another good year for generic launches on many common and expensive medications. As always, these events offer huge potential for savings. Here are a few of the medications scheduled for release in the first quarter of 2012:

-Clarinex
-Geodon
-Lexapro
-Seroquel
-Avandia

We’ll keep you informed as each generic release occurs, and an outlook for additional releases in 2012 as we move toward April.

If you have questions about a particular medication, feel free to email us at info@rxsavingsllc.com

Pharmacy Discount Cards May Lack Savings

Michael Rea, PharmD — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 16:00:56 +0000

We often get questions from consumers who don’t understand the concept of our business, asking “are you like one of those pharmacy discount cards?” We quickly answer “no” trying not be grouped in to a category we feel is inferior to our service offering.

Pharmacy discount cards claim that they give you savings based on their buying group power, and in many instances they do save money off of the retail price. So why is it that we don’t want to be associated with a company that saves money? Two reasons.

1. They often make lofty claims about saving 90% off or more. What they don’t say is that the 90% happened one time at a particular pharmacy on one drug out of 10,000. Although it may be technically true, it doesn’t represent a high standard that most people will experience.

2. Our services are far superior. Instead of taking a discount card and heading to any number of pharmacies and then getting there and praying you’ll get a good price, we give you the information up front with far better pricing as a whole. Our reports are customized for you, and you only. There’s no one size fits all approach.

It is true in life that you get what you pay. Our professionals are ready to help you should that time ever arrive. If that time is now, rest assured that savings are 100% guaranteed, or you’ll never pay a cent.

Have a question? email us at pharmacist@rxsavingsllc.com.

Happy New Year!

Michael Rea, PharmD — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 16:00:24 +0000

From all of us at Rx Savings Solutions, we’d like to wish you a very Happy New Year! We hope this year brings you better health, at a lower cost and we intend to do everything in our power to help it be that way. If you are one of our customers, please reach out to us anytime you have a question by phone or email. For those of you reading who are not customers, we invite you to experience what Rx Savings Solutions does, and how it can help you.

Happy Holidays!

Michael Rea, PharmD — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 16:00:11 +0000

Happy Holidays from all of us at Rx Savings Solutions!

Mail Order’s Iron Fist Control may be Ending

Michael Rea, PharmD — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 16:00:53 +0000

This week, the New York governor signed into law a bill that limits the way pharmacy insurance regulates and mandates that you use their mail order pharmacies. Prior to this bill, pharmacy insurance companies could exclude coverage at certain pharmacies which were typically retail establishments. They usually did so for medications labeled “specialty” which were typically very high in price. By funneling insurance claims to one particular location, they were able to buy in larger bulk and control costs from one facility.

The new New York law addresses this issue for consumers who would like to use a retail pharmacy say, down the street from their house instead of having it delivered by the mail. If other states follow suit, the world of pharmacy and their corresponding price differences at mail order vs. retail settings could change dramatically.

The Hidden Cost of Coupon Cards

Michael Rea, PharmD — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 16:00:09 +0000

Coupon or copay cards have become one of the fastest growing ways for pharmaceutical companies to advertise. They effectively bring down the cost of a brand name medication for the consumers to a more reasonable copay level. It can, in some cases, be even lower than the cost of a similar generic medication in the same therapeutic class. And because most people have it in their head that generic means “inferior” they opt for the new brand name.

In this coupon crazy world we live in, we broke down the winners and losers of copay or coupon card use:

Big Pharma is the ultimate winner! By using coupon copay cards for marketing, they are able to reach customers directly. By fictitiously marking up their product price to the consumer just to mark it back down again, they create a euphoric state. Their product may or may not be better than other products on the market, but their prices are certainly higher.

Your Insurance company is a big loser. By lowering the out of pocket cost for consumers, and pulling their medication choice from cheaper generics to more expensive brands, the insurance company gets blasted with a big bill! Although you may think you don’t care, you should. Next year, this added cost affects your premiums and ultimately it is you footing the bill.

You, the consumer are a sometimes a winner in the short term, but are always a loser in the long term. If you plan on dieing in the next year, you may come out ahead by using coupons. If you don’t, the use of coupons (and Brand Name Drugs in general) will ultimately (and unnecessarily) eat away at your take home pay through growing insurance premiums.

There are a few good reasons to use coupon cards when one of the following apply:
-no other alternative in a generic form exists
- the need for “this” particular medication is real
- the patient would otherwise get no therapy without the coupon, setting them up for an even greater event costing both health and money.

Although coupons for the latest and greatest medications may be cheap or even free to start, they often lead down a more expensive and unnecessary path. Remember that newer medications are not necessarily better. Some of the best medications available today have been around for 20 years or more. If you’re ever unsure, talk about all of the available options with your doctor or feel free to contact us anytime.

Last Chance to sign up for your Medicare Part D Plan

Michael Rea, PharmD — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 16:00:55 +0000

To all of our 65 and older readers (or for those of you that know someone who is), Wednesday of this week will be your final day to enroll in a Medicare Part-D Plan for 2012. You can do a plan comparison by getting a list of your medications and putting them into the online tool at medicare.gov. By using this tool, it will help you find the plan options that are best suited for you and your particular medication regimen. It will also help you save money by eliminating plans that don’t necessarily make sense for you to entertain. Its a great, unbiased resource that will allow you to choose whats best for you, not your insurance agent.