Sunday, January 06, 2008

Rx Drugs for 4-Bucks, You Betcha!

An ideal way to save money in 2008...

Background...

Target Stores started the $4 Rx program. A week and a half later Mall-Wart produced a copycat version. When these programs started I was asked by the UWO Living Healthy Clinic to use those programs. I of course chose Target and have been very happy with the Oshkosh Target Store Pharmacy...so delighted that I am very hesitant to leave them.

Leave them? Yes. I want to shop at the pharmacies downtown.

On a lark I went into Morton City Center Pharmacy and asked if it was possible for them to compete. I didn't care if it was $4. I just wanted to know if they could come close to that figure. Why should I go way out to Target when there are two pharmacies downtown? I live downtown!

The Pharmacist did some figuring and told me that: YES! One Rx would be $4. The other would be $4.50 due to Wisconsin's minimum mark-up law. She smiled and said: "Merry Christmas Gary".

That's the story folks. Pass it on and SHOP DOWNTOWN.

More detail...

Both downtown pharmacies Mortons and Schultz Drug will attempt to help you bring your drug costs ( and gasoline costs) down.

The minimum mark-up law works. As Gordon Hintz says, it's 70yrs. old and needs tweaking. That may be true, but we still need it. It will assist in keeping those pharmacies downtown. All businesses deserve to make a profit and small businesses need to be protected.

I'm happy. This is great news. Now I'm going to go take some of those Elvis drugs.

Peace.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

the mark-up law is meaningless for prescription drugs, since 95% of purchases are made with insurance, there is little or no cost consideration whether it is corporate or local. Target and Wal-Mart are unable to provide $4 drugs in WI because of the mark-up.

Anonymous said...

May I ask what planet you live on? Numbers of uninsured are approaching 50 million.

Second: Would you like to see my $4 receipts from Target and Morton?

Now. Go take YOUR Elvis drugs!

Anonymous said...

But 95% of sales by pharmacies are through insurance. The uninsured who make up the 5% of sales, pay the marked up price for prescription drugs. So the law does nothing to protect competition as it relates to pharmacies, but it inflates the price of drugs.