Ways to Minimize Out of Pocket Expenses on Prescriptions

1. Ways to Minimize Out of Pocket Expenses on Prescriptions Adding health insurance doesn’t mean that you won’t have to pay anything for your healthcare costs. You will be responsible for certain expenses of your healthcare, which are known as out- of-pocket costs. And these costs don’t just occur when you go to an emergency room or get injured. There are many out-of-pocket expenses that you will be responsible for throughout the year. Out-of-pocket expenses on medications is the money that you pay directly while filling a prescription which is not reimbursed by your insurance company. It is important to look at out- of-pocket-expenses while subscribing to a health insurance plan as higher out-of-pocket expenses can correlate to lower prescription adherence and more importation of medications from foreign countries. Even with prescription insurance assistance, patients are made to bear more of the cost-sharing in the form of out-of-pocket expenses through carefully designed tiers in formularies wherein one has to bear a large part of cost-sharing for high tier and specialty branded medications. This all results in prescriptions being partially or not filled, which in turn leaves the health conditions and illnesses untreated. You can also incur out-of-pocket expenses in many other ways, such as: Deductibles The deductible is a set amount established by your plan that you will have to pay annually before your plan begins contributing to your healthcare expenses. For example, if your plan says that your annual deductible is $2,000, you will have to pay $2,000 in your annual healthcare costs before your plan begins to pay. If your plan combines medical and prescription deductibles, this amount can also count toward meeting your deductible amount.

2. Coinsurance Out-of-pocket expenses are typically broken in the ratio of 80:20, so your plan will pay for 80% while you will have to pay for the remaining 20 %. However, coinsurance costs can vary anything from 0% to 30%, depending upon the plan and insurer. Copay Copay is another out-of-pocket expense that you pay for doctor’s office visits; prescription medication fills and visits to hospitals. If your medical insurance covers an expensive brand name drug, it typically applies a higher “copay” tier in favor or a low-cost generic medication. This will result in higher out-of-pocket expenses for you. Tips to minimize your out-of-pocket expenses Skipping medications or going untreated or undertreated due to high out-of-pocket expenses can result in worsening of your illness or condition, missed workdays, hospital admissions, more prescription medications and expensive healthcare outcomes. Out-of-pocket costs account for approximately one-fifth of healthcare burden on the patients, which have brought considerable focus and public concern on reducing these costs. Below tips may help you in minimizing or eliminating your out-of-pocket expenses and save on meds. Request of generic prescriptions To lower your out-of-pocket expenses, you can consult with your doctor for prescribing a generic drug. FDA requires generics to be medically equivalent and have the same chemical structure as their brand-name counterparts. Taking generic whenever possible will considerably reduce your medications’ costs. $4 monthly generic plan Walmart and many other pharmacies have a $4 per month generic drug list in which 30-day generic drug supply is offered for a dose regimen needed to treat common conditions. A 90-day supply of the same medication can be purchased from such pharmacies for $10-$12. Review your plan’s formulary Review the formulary or drug list for your plan. Certain medications may not be covered or require special approval. Take the formulary list to your doctor’s appointment to help them prescribe the most appropriate medication for your condition. Patient assistance programs Many brand name drug manufacturers offer Patient Assistance Programs for uninsured or low- income patients. You can search for these plans on the drug manufacturer’s website.

3. A small amount of new medications You can also ask your doctor to write a small amount of new medication prescription until you know it is right for your condition. This is especially helpful if you are paying cash or have large copay. Download EzRx drug discount card for FREE A better option could be to download EzRx drug discount card for free from www.ezrxdrugcard.com. You just need to show your EzRx medications savings card to the pharmacist while filling your prescription. The pharmacist will run your card through EzRx system and charge you only the discounted price, which could be as low as just 15% (85% discounted) of their retail price. It’s that simple to use. You can use your EzRx drug discount card at over 65,000 network pharmacies all over the USA to save on prescription medications, including the major brand chains such as Winn Dixie, Rite Aid, CVS, Walgreens, Target, Safeway and many more. Get yourdigital drug saving card You can also get your digital drug saving card by texting the keyword “EZRX” to phone number 21000 and use it immediately as soon as you download your EzRx prescription savings card or get your digital medications discount card on your mobile as it is provided pre-activated. You can use it as Albuterol discount card,flu vaccine discount card, Adipex discount card, Benzonatate saving card and to save on prescriptions that you need for yourself, family and friends as it can be shared with others as well. Price shopping for medications Medication costs can vary significantly among drugstores. Increasingly, pharmacies compete for the lowest cost of medications to attract more customers. You can check drug prices at www.ezrxdrugcard.com for the lowest price of medications at a local pharmacy in your area to save on prescription drugs. Checking and comparing medications’ prices will help you know if you are getting a good price for your medication at your current pharmacy. No registration costs are involved to download your free drug discount card. We do not ask for your personal information like your age, income, health condition or insurance. Everybody is eligible to download EzRx prescription savings card for Free with no renewal costs. The card can be used to save on medication costs with insuranceas it works independently of your insurance coverage and can be used to save on out-of-pocket expenses and lowering your prescription medication costs even if you have health insurance, Medicare, Medicaid or you are in the donut hole of your coverage. For those without insurance, EzRx drug card is a tool that will help them save on medications each time they need a prescription filled or refilled, as it can be used for an unlimited number of prescription fills. Download your EzRx drug card and start saving on your prescriptions.