Higher dose of prescription Medicine

[JanetRose]

Does it sound right that a higher dose of medicine could end up costing no more than the lower dose?

thanks.

 

[monkey68]

Are we talking out of pocket, or with an insurance plan? Also, is it higher dose, but less pills?

 

[JanetRose]

Insurance plan
higher dose
same amount of pills

 

[KristaTX]

Yes, in some cases. This is my educated guess. . .

I am assuming in your case that you mean like a 30-day supply of 25 mg tablets costing you or your insurance the same as a 30-day supply of 100mg tablets (same medication but different dosage). It's kind of like a small shirt costing the same as a large shirt. The cost difference to the manufacturer may be accounted for or even somewhat negligible.

But it wouldn't be that case in every single instance. There would be some specialized, high-cost drugs that are so costly to manufacture per gram (either because of ingredients or the process) that a seemingly small change in the dosage would actually affect the manufacturer's cost greatly, and which would therefore affect cost for the patient/insurance.

Like if the shirt was made out of gold? A large would probably cost more than a small .

 

[laurie31]

This is common even without insurance plans.

I know of people whose doctors write for double the actual needed dose and then the patient can cut the pill in half, thus cutting their monthy cost in half as well.

This can only be done if the pill is not extended release and is able to be broken exactly in half, usually using a special tool, AND if the physician believes the patient is capable of following the directions to take 1/2 a pill. In other words, it's not appropriate for someone with dementia or who is easily confused.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

Some doctors will only write the prescription for the exact dosage of the medication. My son's doctor told me to break his pills in half and see if he did well with a lower dosage. When we went back to see him, I told him the lower dose worked fine so he wrote the a new prescription for the lower dosage. He said that, ethically, he had to write it for the lower dosage for a 30 day supply. He considers writing it for a higher dosage and telling me to break them in half as insurance fraud. The 50 mg pills cost the same (out of pocket for me) as the 100 mg pills.

 

[MushyMushy]

It's like that with my Synthroid. I bounce back and forth between doses all the time and they are always the same.

 

[Abbie]

Some doctors will only write the prescription for the exact dosage of the medication. My son's doctor told me to break his pills in half and see if he did well with a lower dosage. When we went back to see him, I told him the lower dose worked fine so he wrote the a new prescription for the lower dosage. He said that, ethically, he had to write it for the lower dosage for a 30 day supply. He considers writing it for a higher dosage and telling me to break them in half as insurance fraud. The 50 mg pills cost the same (out of pocket for me) as the 100 mg pills.

Have you asked your doctor if he can write for the 100mg pill but change the dosing directions to 1/2 tab? There's no ethical reason why he couldn't do that, there's no fraud if the directions reflect the correct dosage.

 

[DebbieB]

Have you asked your doctor if he can write for the 100mg pill but change the dosing directions to 1/2 tab? There's no ethical reason why he couldn't do that, there's no fraud if the directions reflect the correct dosage.

It depends on the insurance plan. My plan has a $10 copay for a 30 day generic supply or a $20 copay for a 90 day through mail order. If he's writing a script for 1/2 tab, it's going to last twice as long, longer than the copay allows.

 

[LuvOrlando]

Every Insurance is different and how they treat each drug is different. My DD11 is on Flovent for Asthma. Even though her Dr prefers Flovent, Medco has it on a non-preferred list so I have to pay 1/2 of the cost as a penalty for following me Dr's orders. I suspect that whatever drug it is you are on happens to be on your Insurance's preferred list so they will reward you by reducing your costs. I think it is an incentive to keep what you have.

 

[Nancy]

Some doctors will only write the prescription for the exact dosage of the medication. My son's doctor told me to break his pills in half and see if he did well with a lower dosage. When we went back to see him, I told him the lower dose worked fine so he wrote the a new prescription for the lower dosage. He said that, ethically, he had to write it for the lower dosage for a 30 day supply. He considers writing it for a higher dosage and telling me to break them in half as insurance fraud. The 50 mg pills cost the same (out of pocket for me) as the 100 mg pills.

doctor is incorrect...my insurance actually sent out brochures on pill splitting and Medco, a pharmacy benefit manager, will send free pill splitters to those that want to take advantage of this.

 

[sbell111]

Some of our cars take regular unleaded while some take higher-octane premium. The premium costs more.

 

[DisneyMom81]

DH is a pharmacist, and he told me that at first, viagra was the same price at all dosages. People who needed the 25mg would get the 100mg and then cut it up into quarters, hence get 4 for 1. I think now it costs more for the higher dose, because they realized people were doing that and they were losing money.