Wherever we go, whoever we talk to, the obvious question we’re asked is how does Rx Savings Solutions find savings on prescription drugs.
Naturally, people think it’s all about finding generic alternatives to name-brand medications. If it were that easy, everybody would be doing it. And there are plenty of price lookup tools out there that are basically doing that.
Not Rx Savings Solutions. Of all the clinical savings suggestions we offer to members, brand-to-generic switches account for only 21 percent! So what else is there?
Here’s a breakdown of the most common Rx Savings Solutions suggestion types curated by our pharmacy team and shared with our members, along with a brief explanation of each. In order of utilization:
Therapeutic Equivalents (a.k.a. Therapeutic Alternatives): Contain different active ingredients than the original medication but have the same effect when taken in equivalent doses.
- Fulfillment: Finding better prices at different retail pharmacies or through mail order.
- Generic Substitutions: Contain the same active ingredients as their brand-name counterparts and have the same effect when taken at the same dose.
- Dosage Optimization: Purchasing the same active ingredient in twice the dose (often at the same or similar price) that has been prescribed and splitting the tablets in half to achieve the correct dosage. Sometimes, it’s the reverse (half the dosage, twice the number of tablets).
- Generic Clones: Contain the same active and inactive ingredients as the brand-name drug.
- Combination Splits: Taking the individual ingredients (separate “pills”) when a drug is a combination of two or more active ingredients.
- Dosage Form Changes: Contains the same active ingredients, taken at the same dose but using a different form, i.e. changing from tablets to capsules.
Clearly, savings opportunities go well beyond available generics. Who knew? Maybe not even your doctor. Probably a seasoned pharmacist, if he/she has the time for an exhaustive search. The average consumer? Not a chance.
That’s the beauty of Rx Savings Solutions. Our patented algorithms and clinical pharmacy know-how combine to do countless hours of research and analysis in the blink of an eye.
And every member is notified of a savings opportunity without lifting a finger. The only thing left to do is save the money.
