Mastodawn

@Jason844 I'm really curious how CVS and pharmacies haven't been sued into oblivion for very obvious price fixing.

Customer 1: $25
Customer 2: $400

For the EXACT SAME DRUG & DOSAGE

@pixelpusher220 Include the medical insurance in that price fixing. They are part of this, too.

@Jason844 insurance companies get flat Geneva Convention torture charges

@Jason844 @pixelpusher220

Franceska Mann 3d ago

Free Luigi

Coles Street Pothole 3d ago

@pixelpusher220 @Jason844
Oh yeah. The prescription pricing landscape is one of the wildest in the health care sector. Pharmacies pay list price, but then apply for "rebates" according to who they vend the drugs to. Insurers and pharmacies negotiate what plans will cover. And drug manufacturers game the system to protect their patents and block generics. The 340B program allows deep discounts...which are rarely passed on to the intended low-income patients. 😡 Nuts.

Dgar 3d ago

@Jason844
Is it cheaper by 800%, 1200%, 1500%, or even 900%?

@dgar 😖

@dgar @Jason844 it's utterly random, solely up to whatever deal the ins company negotiated with the PBO (the middle man who negotiates with the drug mfrs).

Some pharmacies, PBOs and drug mfrs are literally owned by same corporate conglomerate...so 'savings' are a fantasy

@pixelpusher220 @dgar

The system in the US is one giant corporate scam.

Dgar 3d ago

@Jason844 @pixelpusher220
The whole system, not just medical…

@dgar @Jason844 there are some hints of sanity.

Hawaii just banned it's corporations from spending on state political issues.

There was a time, when corporations were goal specific. The Hoover Dam was built by one. Once built it dissolved and turned the dam over to the govt.

We need corps to have a purpose other than literally just 'making money'. That entirely makes fscking anything ok...and that's not ok

RealGene ☣️3d ago

@pixelpusher220 @dgar @Jason844
CVS owns / is owned by Caremark, a PBO.
Many insurers go through Caremark, which happens to prioritize CVS as the pharmacy of first choice.

Caremark will NOT pay for a 90-day Rx *except* at CVS. Only 30-day at any other pharmacy. They're counting on customer exasperation and laziness to drive business to CVS.

Robots can be gay deal with it 3d ago

@Jason844 Amazon has a subscription prescription service.

NO, REALLY...

anguinea 3d ago

@Jason844
I just got back from the local CVS where the pharmacist thought it was ridiculous that my new insurance would have me pay $100 for 3 months of my generic BP med. He offered to use a store coupon instead of it running through insurance, so I paid $25!

Scott Miller 🇺🇦 🇺🇸3d ago

@anguinea @Jason844 GoodRX strangely has lower prices on many generics than my insurance, to the point of hundreds of dollars of savings. If I’m understanding correctly, many insurance companies negotiate some kind of “savings” with the generic medication manufacturer and only share some of that with the customer.

Unless I’m missing something, the insurance companies is actually netting a net profit in those cases.

anguinea 3d ago

@scottmiller42 @Jason844
I think that might just be the case and why the pharmacist had such disdain for the deal I was getting.

🇺🇦 haxadecimal 🚫👑3d ago

@Jason844
For profit health care and insurance companies, for the win!
Oops, I meant, for the lose!

Wintermute_BBS 3d ago

@Jason844 unfortunately, anything that would make US health care better is considered "socialism" by the vast majority of the US citizens. Even by those who suffer under the current one. To us "stalinist" europeans this seems very strange.

@Wintermute_BBS I could give you another rant on that one, too. But I'm limiting myself to one rant per week for mental health reasons...

Wintermute_BBS 3d ago

@Jason844 rest assured that you have all my sympathy with regards to the topic.

take care!