Diving Into The Ins And Outs Of Lowering Canadian Pharmacy Costs

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Are you one of the 40 million Americans who rely on expensive prescription medication to ensure you lead a normal life?

If so, read on to find out how to cut your medical expenses by taking advantage of lower Canadian pharmacy costs.

Compare Canadian Pharmacy Costs Online

Canadian drug prices are some of the cheapest worldwide, but you can save even more with these cost-cutting tips. Look for cost-comparison websites to find the most affordable deals on your medication.

You’ll find several of these handy price-comparison tools online. They work the same as those comparison engines that help find you the best prices on airline tickets or car hire.

Imported drugs may not always be the cheapest when you take shipping costs into consideration, so be sure to add up all the factors before you place your order.

Vet Your Options

Before you start handing out your credit card details to all and sundry, do a little research about the online pharmacy.

The first thing to check before buying medicine online is if they accept US prescriptions. Make sure the pharmacy has a legitimate license, an encrypted customer privacy policy, and stringent online security measures too. 

After that, look for online reviews about the website to see if anyone has had any problems with them before.

You can never be too careful, if you order your medication from a shady operator, you could end up with harmful chemicals instead. Not only will this endanger your health but you’ll be out of pocket and still have none of the drugs you need.

Use Coupons

Just like grocery stores and retailers offer coupons, some online pharmacies will give you discounts subject to certain conditions.

You could benefit by saving when ordering prescriptions online for the first time, get a discount for ordering particular quantities of medication, or benefit product price cuts. Always check for any available coupons before purchasing from an online pharmacy. 

Some pharmacies offer price match guarantees or discounts for referring a friend too. 

Speak to Your Doctor About Generic Options

Many expensive brand name medications have generic alternatives. These generics offer all the same benefits of the original at a fraction of the price.

The reason for this is that once a patent’s expired any drug manufacturer has carte blanche to produce the same product. However, they don’t have to pay for all the expensive research and development that went into the original cure.

Due to this, they can offer medication with the same active ingredient for a fraction of the price. 

You should always speak to your doctor about generic options for any medication they prescribe. If they can recommend a suitable alternative, ask them to change your script.

Opt for a 90-Day Supply

During your online research into Canadian prescription costs, you’re bound to notice that buying medication in bulk works out cheaper per pill.

While doctors usually prescribe a 30-day supply for their patients, you can order larger quantities online. Ask your doctor for a 90-day prescription for the medication you need instead.

Not only will you save in the long run, but you also won’t have to worry about ordering again for the next three months. 

Some health insurance and Medicaid plans also offer significant savings if you go this route too. 

Split Your Pills

Just like larger quantities of pills work out cheaper, so do larger doses. Often a larger dose of particular medication costs the same as its less potent counterpart.

So it makes sense that you can save by splitting a 10mg pill into two 5mg halves.

Many medications are suitable for pill-splitting, but it’s not a good tactic for every kind of pill. You should never split some medications like slow-release formulas as they’ll lose their efficacy this way.

Birth control pills, those with an enteric coating, and pills that you need to take several times a day are all unsuitable for splitting.

If you don’t have a steady hand, you can ask your pharmacist to split the pills for you. However, you’ll need to consume the second half as soon as possible, so you can’t get them to split the entire batch straight away.

Never split pills using a knife, it’s almost impossible to get a clean break and divide the pills evenly. 

Speak to your doctor about whether this is a good option for your medication and ask them to amend your prescription accordingly. 

In this way, you could save up to 50% on your medications. 

Ask Your Doctor About Samples

Pharmaceutical reps regularly hand out samples of their medications to doctors. Ask your doctor if he has any samples of the medication you need.

Not only will this save you on the cost of a few doses, but it will also give you a chance to try out new medication before paying for a full month’s supply.

If you have concerns about affording the medication prescribed by your doctor, speak up. They have your best interests at heart and are sure to have suggestions on how you can get what you need more affordably. 

Review Your Health Insurance Policy

When your health insurance provider sends around their annual renewal forms, don’t sign them straight away.

These companies constantly review and revise their plans and may have made changes that can benefit you.

Take a look at the drug formulary list for some of the other plans offered by your health insurer. This list contains information about which medications they’ll pay for as well as any co-payments required.

A few calculations could reveal that switching to another plan works out cheaper for your needs. Be sure to check the generic options for your medication at the same time. 

More Healthy Habits

If you learned anything from this discount prescription advice on Canadian pharmacy costs, some of our other money-saving tips may interest you.

Keep reading our website for more information and advice on how to save and thrive in your daily life.

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