Prazosin

[Guest Opie_Boy]

We took Opie to his regular vet last night just to discuss his recent bladder issues and get his opinion on the whole situation. We decided to keep him on a low dosage of prazosin since he seems to be doing so well on it.

 

Anyway, our vet doesn't keep that medication in stock so we took it to be filled at Target. After some initial confusion on how to handle a pet prescription, they quoted us at $80 for a 30 day supply. Our jaws dropped right down to the floor but we figured we would just get it filled for now and we'll do some price comparison for next month. After our name was called and we went up to check out, they rang us up for $9......I have no problem admitting that I signed that receipt and scurried right on out of Target I certainly wasn't going to bring it to their attention or ask about the earlier price we were quoted.

 

Now I'm left curious about what the price should actually be. Prazosin is listed on their discount generic list, but are those prices supposed to be with insurance? I really have no idea how it works because I have health insurance and I've never really thought about prescription prices. $9.00 strikes me as pretty darn low, but $80 seems ridiculous. Anyone else give Prazosin? What do you pay for it? Or does anyone know how that generic list at Target is supposed to work? Just curious about what I can expect for next month

[sweetdogs]

The generic list doesn't have to do with insurance. That's the price with or without insurance. I think it just bypasses insurance altogether. Also doesn't matter what species it's being filled for. I LOVE the generic lists. So unless they change the price on the generic list, $9 should be what you pay next month.

[Guest Opie_Boy]

The generic list doesn't have to do with insurance. That's the price with or without insurance. I think it just bypasses insurance altogether. Also doesn't matter what species it's being filled for. I LOVE the generic lists. So unless they change the price on the generic list, $9 should be what you pay next month.

 

Oh that's so great!! We're lucky it happens to be on that list. They must have typed something really funky in to come up with $80 initially Thanks!

[joejoesmom]

As someone who is uninsurable, I am unfortunately very knowledgeable about prescription drugs. A quick check shows that this drug is on the $4/$10 list at many places. This means that you can get 30 for $4 or 90 for $10. The $4/$10 is the typical price here in Ohio. It may be different in other parts of the country.

 

The best thing to do is to find a local pharmacy that will price match. Most WalMarts will do this, but I use Giant Eagle Grocery store as they are more convenient for me. Then you can have all prescriptions called in there (or drop them off). Meanwhile, call other local pharmacies and ask for the "cash price". I have found prices can range from $10 to $200 for the exact same medicine. Tell your price matching pharmacy who to call for the price match. I have saved literally thousands of dollars by doing this. This cash price applies no matter what species uses the medicine.

 

You can even do this if you have insurance. Sometimes it is cheaper to get the "cash price" (no insurance involved) than the insurance co-pay.

 

Jane

 

Edited to add:

 

According to Target's website. You should have been charged $4 for a month's supply of 30 capsules. In Ohio, they would also need to add state sales tax (since it is for a pet versus a human).

 

http://sites.target....phabetical#secP

Edited January 24, 2012 by joejoesmom

[Guest Opie_Boy]

As someone who is uninsurable, I am unfortunately very knowledgeable about prescription drugs. A quick check shows that this drug is on the $4/$10 list at many places. This means that you can get 30 for $4 or 90 for $10. The $4/$10 is the typical price here in Ohio. It may be different in other parts of the country.

 

The best thing to do is to find a local pharmacy that will price match. Most WalMarts will do this, but I use Giant Eagle Grocery store as they are more convenient for me. Then you can have all prescriptions called in there (or drop them off). Meanwhile, call other local pharmacies and ask for the "cash price". I have found prices can range from $10 to $200 for the exact same medicine. Tell your price matching pharmacy who to call for the price match. I have saved literally thousands of dollars by doing this. This cash price applies no matter what species uses the medicine.

 

You can even do this if you have insurance. Sometimes it is cheaper to get the "cash price" (no insurance involved) than the insurance co-pay.

 

Jane

 

Edited to add:

 

According to Target's website. You should have been charged $4 for a month's supply of 30 capsules. In Ohio, they would also need to add state sales tax (since it is for a pet versus a human).

 

http://sites.target....phabetical#secP

 

Interesting, thanks for the tips/info. I think we were charged $9 because his month supply is more than 30 pills. I did see that Walmart listed it on their generic list as well. Unfortunately, when we called them they told us it's not a prescription they keep in stock. I think that might be a problem we run into with other pharmacies as well. I guess the prescription isn't all that common in the human world. Target didn't even have his full prescription in stock, they just gave us what they had and added the extra for his refill next time.

I'll be sure to call around and ask for price matches & cash price. For convenience, if nothing else. We rarely go to Target.

Thanks!