Purchasing from Your Physician Could Cost Big Bucks

A new article published in the New York Times is shining light on another extra expense you may be subjected to.

Purchasing your medications directly from your physician means you could pay almost 10 times as much. The article uses Zantac as a clear example.  If the patient takes the prescription to their local pharmacy they will pay on average 35 cents per pill. If the same patient purchases the drug from their physician the cost skyrockets to $3.24 a pill. This cost is forwarded onto insurance companies.

Barry Meier and Katie Thomas report that “experts say that doctors, middlemen and drug distributors are adding hundreds of millions of dollars annually to the costs borne by taxpayers, insurance companies and employers through the practice of physician dispensing.”

Much more information can be found in the original article and we encourage you to stay informed.

Have you been given the option to purchase medications from your doctor’s office? Did you notice a mark-up?