Would you switch?

[JanH]

Just wondering. We have had not so good service with a pharmacy in the past. The one we use now is awesome. And most of our meds are generic and copay is $10. I think I would rather stay with them regardless of the cost. Now that some are charging $4 a prescription, if yours was on the list would you change? I know that ours is not on it and there's got to be some catches, but just wondering. If you would switch for frugality's sake or stick with one you really like.

[tinapbeana]

i have no prescriptions, but i stick with service if it's only a small difference in price for most anything.

[PRICEPLUS]

If the price difference is not substantial and your service at present is good I'd stay put. A good pharmacy is a necessity!

[aurielle]

I'm sticking with my pharmacy. Good service at a pharmacy is really important to me. Couple years ago, I had a good pharmacy. They merged with a drugstore chain pharmacy. The first time I had to have a prescription filled after the merge, I was very sick and needed antibiotics. I dropped the Rx off and they said it would be about an hour. I waited an hour and a half and went to pick it up and I STILL had to wait standing in line for 45 minutes while feeling like crap. I immediately switched to another pharmacy and have been happy since.

Thats the reason why I like independent pharmacies, not ones that are inside grocery stores or walmart or whatever. They concentrate on one thing so they do it very well with much less wait and the clerks are more skilled. It p****s me off when I go to walmart to pick up a Rx and I have to wait behind people and they're also buying a cartload of stuff at the same time they're picking up their Rx at the pharmacy register. I just wanna get my drugs and GO.

[JanH]

The thing that finished me with the previous pharmacy was the fact that I got the wrong dosage on one of my meds. If I hadn't been taking it for awhile, I wouldn't have known. I assumed people make mistakes til I heard from a friend that something like that had also happened to them. So I switched to the one I have now and love it. They also continually surprise me with the speed that they do the presciptions. I try to preorder, but the times I have had to fill one immediately, they were very fast. And they recognize me as a repeat customer. I like that they know who I am. I think I will stay with them.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Pharmacy being close to home is highly important to me. The one I use is 2 blocks away. Nearest Wal-Mart is 8 miles, and they are not a $4 one, though I did see that one of my medicines is on their list. I'd only save $2, and that surely is not worth the HASSLE of Wal-Marting.

[getforfree]

If it saves you at least $10/month, I would go with the cheaper one if it's close enough. Some Pharmacies give away $10 or more giftcards for switching to them. They advertise it in their ad sometimes. If I would have to use one, I would switch as often as possible.

[Ima saver]

I would stay with my local pharmacy also. Wal mart is over a 50 mile round trip.

[lgslgs]

I personally wouldn't pay an extra $6 for better service. Do you get these pills once per month? $72 a year is a lot of money for a few minutes a month of being treated "better".

Lynda

[JanH]

Originally Posted by lgslgs

I personally wouldn't pay an extra $6 for better service. Do you get these pills once per month? $72 a year is a lot of money for a few minutes a month of being treated "better".

Lynda

Actually it is a couple of prescriptions a month. So the savings would be nice. But after the mixup with my pills, I feel this pharmacy does a better job with accuracy and safety. That's important to me. But this debate is the reason I asked. Cos money is a concern.

[JanH]

By the way, the other pharmacy was not a walmart pharmacy. In fact, the chain is now out of business in this area.

[lgslgs]

Originally Posted by JanH

Actually it is a couple of prescriptions a month. So the savings would be nice. But after the mixup with my pills, I feel this pharmacy does a better job with accuracy and safety. That's important to me.

Well, how's this as a way to get the best of both worlds.

Never fill a new prescription any place but at the pharmacy you trust the most.

Transfer the prescription and fill the refills at the place where you save the $6. (I assume that's the place where you aren't keen on the pharmacist, right?) Check the filled prescription like a hawk, compare the pills to the ones you got from your favorite pharmacist, and if you ever again have a pharmacist error make that pharmacist's life holy heck by going immediately to his employer and tell them that he messed up.

That lets you save 6$ most of the time, and pay $6 for your favorite pharmacist's expertise at those times when it is beyond your ability to make a judgement about whether the prescription is correct or not. Sure, it means you need to count those pills, an look at the size, shape and markings each time - but that is a good thing to get in the habit of doing no matter how much you trust any pharmacist!

Of course, if you are debt free and feel that your savings is in really good shape, spending and extra $6, $12 or $18 per month doesn't really make a difference in the grand scheme of things. If you are paying off debt, trying to build savings, or trying to make a fixed income go as far as possible, the "best of both worlds" approach could help you out quite a bit.

Lynda

[JanH]

lgslgs: The pharmacy with the problems is now closed. I do like the idea of savings if my drugs ever make the list. However, I wonder if this is where I'd like to spend more. That's why I asked what others would do. I am not sure what I might end up doing if it ever becomes an option for me. But you raise some good points there.