Why do your meds cost so much?? here it is ...

This is just mind-boggling!

Make sure you read all the way past the list of the drugs. The woman that signed below is a Budget Analyst out of federal Washington, DC offices.

Did you ever wonder how much it costs a drug company for the active ingredient in prescription medications? Some people think it must cost a lot, since many drugs sell! for more than $2.00 per tablet.

We did a search of offshore chemical synthesizers that supply the active ingredients found in drugs approved by the FDA. As we have revealed in past issues of Life Extension, a significant percentage of drugs sold in the United States contain active ingredients made in other countries.

In our independent investigation of how much profit drug companies really make, we obtained the actual price of active ingredients used in some of the most popular drugs sold in America.

The data below speaks for itself.
Celebrex: 100 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $130.27
Cost of general active ingredients: $0.60
Percent markup: 21,712%

Claritin: 10 mg
Consumer Price (100 tablets): $215.17
Cost of general active ingredients: $0.71
Percent markup: 30,306%

Keflex: 250 mg
Consumer Price (100 tablets): $157.39
Cost of general active ingredients: $1.88
Percent markup: 8,372%

Lipitor: 20 mg
Consumer Price (100 tablets): $272.37
Cost of general active ingredients: $5.80
Percent markup: 4,696%

Norvasc: 10 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $188.29
Cost of general active ingredients: $0.14
Percent markup: 134,493%

Paxil: 20 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $220.27
Cost of general active ingredients: $7.60
Percent markup: 2,898%

Prevacid: 30 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $44.77
Cost of general active ingredients: $1.01
Percent markup: 34,136%

Prilosec: 20 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $360.97
Cost of general active ingredients $0.52
Percent markup: 69,417%

Prozac: 20 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets) : $247.47
Cost of general active ingredients: $0.11
Percent markup: 224,973%
Tenormin: 50 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $104.47
Cost of general active ingredients: $0.13
Percent markup: 80,362%

Vasotec: 10 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $102.37
Cost of general active ingredients: $0.20
Percent markup: 51,185%

Xanax: 1 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets) : $136.79
Cost of general active ingredients: $0.024
Percent markup: 569,958%

Zestril: 20 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets) $89.89
Cost of general active ingredients $3.20
Percent markup: 2,809

Zithromax: 600 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $1,482.19
Cost of general active ingredients: $18.78
Percent markup: 7,892%

Zocor: 40 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $350.27
Cost of general active ingredients: $8.63
Percent markup: 4,059%

Zoloft: 50 mg
Consumer price: $206.87
Cost of general active ingredients: $1.75
Percent markup: 11,821%

Since the cost of prescription drugs is so outrageous, I thought everyone should know about this.

Please read the following and pass it on.

It pays to shop around. This helps to solve the mystery as to why they can afford to put a Walgreen's on every corner.

On Monday night, Steve Wilson, an investigative reporter for Channel 7 News in Detroit , did a story on generic drug price gouging by pharmacies.

He found in his investigation, that some of these generic drugs were marked up as much as 3,000% or more. Yes, that's not a typo.....three thousand percent!

So often, we blame the drug companies for the high cost of drugs, and usually rightfully so. But in this case, the fault clearly lies with the pharmacies themselves. !

For example, if you had to buy a prescription drug, and bought the name brand, you might pay $100 for 100 pills. The pharmacist might tell you that if you get the generic equivalent, they would only cost $80, making you think you are "saving" $20

What the pharmacist is not telling you is that those 100 generic pills may have only cost him $10!

At the end of the report, one of the anchors asked Mr.. Wilson whether or not there were any pharmacies that did not adhere to this practice, and he said that Costco consistently charged little over their cost for the generic drugs.

I went to the Costco site, where you can look up any drug, and get its online price. It says that the in-store prices are consistent with the online prices. I was appalled. Just to give you one example from my own experience. I had to use the drug, Compazine, which helps prevent nausea in chemo patients.

I used the generic equivalent, which cost $54.99 for 60 pills at CVS.

I checked the price at Costco, and I could have bought 100 pills for $19.89.

For 145 of my pain pills, I paid $72.57.

I could have got 150 at Costco for $28.08.

I would like to mention, that although Costco is a "membership" type store, you do NOT have to be a member to buy prescriptions there, as it is a federally regulated substance. You just tell them at the door
that you wish to use the pharmacy, and they will let you in (this is true.) I went there this past Thursday and asked them.

I am asking each of you to please help by copying this letter, and pasting it into your own e-mail, and send it to everyone you know with an e-mail address.

Sharon L. Davis
Budget Analyst
U.S. Department of Commerce
Room 6839
Office Ph: 202-482-4458
Office Fax: 202-482-5480
E-mail Address: sdavis@doc.gov

WOW!

It's also important to note that the inflated costs also go toward store costs (like electric) and toward's paying the salaries for pharmacists.

</font><blockquote><div id="quote"><font class="small">Quote:</font>

This chart has little relevance (other than an inflammatory one), as far more goes into the retail pricing of drugs than the raw cost of their active ingredients. Pharmaceutical companies expend money on the research and development costs of creating the drugs, plus the overhead costs of manufacturing, marketing, and shipping them; as well, pharmacies must sell drugs for more than their wholesale prices in order to cover the overhead costs of store operations (including pharmacists' salaries).

</div></font></blockquote><font class="post"> Snopes Urban Legends Regarding Cost of Generic Meds

However, uh marking up a medication 11,000% is a BIT extreme. Sheesh.

Exactly 1day and I am not huge fan of your the source of your link but let us say they are 100% right...and I dont think either side is but say they are...how come Costco can sell it and pay heat and gas and the staff at much lower profits? I never believe anyone 100%

my goodness!! I knew the cost of medications had gone thru the roof but this is robbery!!

There is one thing we also need to take into consideration that hasn't been mentioned. The pharmasutical companies are continually doing reasarch trying to develop new drugs all the time & new ways of dispensing of them (not all meds are pills...patches, med to disolve in your mouth, etc). Also, the pharmasutical companies do have programs for people who have low income & don't have any med insurance. (I know for 6 months I was able to use that program for my fentynal narcotic I use continually for my migraines until they reviewed my income tax). When I was looking into it for that med, I found other companies have similar programs for the meds they produce.

I know the cost of meds for me is shocking when I actually see the numbers. I use 20 patches a month & the actual cost of the med is about $1200.00 for the 20....that is $60.00/patch. Fortunately I have only had to pay $900.00/month. Then we look at the yearly cost even at my lower price comes out to be $10,800.00/year. That is more than my parents paid for their house & they had 30 years to pay for it.

Realizing that others have paid high prices for the pharmsutical company to develope the med I am using doesn't help me like the fact that I am paying a high price. but fentynal for me has helped me get my life back & not constantly having migraines without any let up until this was developed....& the fact that all I have to do is change a patch every 3 days without having to constantly be taking pills that never worked anyway,

My daughters friend has just graduated with her pharmasutical degree with plans of working for a pharmasutical company & work on developing new cancer meds.....this is really what is going on behind the scene.....most of that high cost doesn't go to the pharmacy that is selling it, but the pharmasutical company that developed it.

Debbie

recently Walgreen's pharmacy department put things such as "real nutcase", "crazy", "outright nuts" on patient records. this was found out by the woman who was called a "real nutcase". she went public. i used to go there and one night i went in to pick up something non-narcotic...the clerk asked for my drivers license. i refused to give it to her. (why would she need my license number, i was paying in cash)...she kept insisting and i finally told her to give me my @#$%^^&&** prescription or i would call a friend who is a detective. the manager walked up and they reluctantly let me have my meds.

being really $%^&*(off, i checked my prices against another pharmacy's prices (national chain also)...what i was paying $32 for at walgreens, i get for $18 now...what was costing me $24 now costs me $12........i'd say that walgreen needs to be ----- slapped up side their greedy and inappropriate heads!

i don't buy the "all our expenses make your drugs cost you so much" story. even a locally owned pharmacy here is cheaper than walgreens. and you KNOW he can't buy in the quantities that the chains do. xanax costs me $12 for 90. go figure! pat

The table included in the original post is a completely unfair representation of "markup". While the active ingredients in prescription drugs may be fairly inexpensive, that's hardly the the basis on which the drug companies can set prices. The average new medicine takes between 7 to 10 years and $500 million dollars to produce...and that's before the FDA gets a crack at them. The additional trials to get it through the regulatory system cost a few hundred million more. After approval, they have to pay to manufacture the drug, package it, ship it to the store, advertise it, teach doctors about it, etc. Then the company has about seven years to make enough money to cover the costs of development, the costs of all the research that didn't result in any useful drugs, and to return a profit to the shareholders.

I believe the costs are high, not just drugs, but everything. What has been forgotten though, is these drugs do not produce themselves,daily items we use do not produce themselves. To understand business, and the things we consume, one needs to understand where the costs of items come from. Such as, research,the machines,people's salary,utilities,supplies,insurance,chemical neutralization and waste removal (costly, but it's for public and nature's safety),transportation of goods from manufacturer to distributors, etc. all these are factored into the cost of the meds. and any items we consume. I understand it is a tough reality and before understanding business operations, I was enraged at drug prices. Fortunately my husband has a terrific drug plan this year, compared to our other plan.
Though he pays a fee every month, from his salary, it saves us a lot in the long run. Most of the time when a manufacturer's patent runs out,generics come about, being less costly, so if your doc deems generic safe for you, that's a good way to go.
I shopped around, various drug stores charge different prices, I found most grocery store pharmacies, charge less than privately owned pharmacy.
I wish y'all luck, and that in the future some laws will be passed to assist those without drug plans.
Take care now,
DE

Hi Sleeps,

Part of the reason Costco can do what it can is because people pay a membership fee to shop there (I think it is about $40/year for individuals, and more for businesses). They can offer their goods for less because they buy their sales goods in such huge quantities and do not do a lot of things that many other stores do....regular advertising in newspapers and on radio/TV, a lot of customer service (shoppers help themselves for the most part).

It also pays to shop around among pharamacies, even between Costco and others. Here in our town, we do have a Costco. It's true that you don't have to be a member to use it (I'm not) so I did check on their prices for my medications. I also checked some other pharmacies. Their prices were among the lowest, but one near me was even lower, and this local pharmacy is much nicer and friendlier too! Every year or two, I call around and check again. As much as prescriptions cost, it's worth checking around. They do vary wildly.

Take care,
ErinBear

You know, it never occured to me until recently that I could actually call around and get the price of medications at different pharmacies. (Estimates I call them...lol) I just went with one place where I assumed they would be the lowest.

However, when I started having to buy 4 times the amount of one pill that normal people buy last fall, I actually started calling around.

Luckily, right now, I don't rely on the pharmacy for my medicines, but when I do - I will definitely shop around.

Wow! I just paid Walgeens 153.00. for a Psych med. (The last time too)I used my Ohio Buckeye card as My medicare part D plan did not cover this drug. Stupid, Huh! Go figure! Medicaide did not pick it up and I pay 519 bucks to be on their roles. (not for long.) It's Christmas...every day with the Pharmacies and Drug companies..folks! Grrrr!

A lot of companies are guilty of price fixing and price gouging. With price fixing 2 or more companies agree on fixing the prices. With price gouging, the companies will increase their prices as the demand of the product increases.

The whole situation sucks, IMO.

I think some of you need to look at the actual percentages again...many are well into several THOUSDAND per cent...Now keeping that in mind and the fact that our drug companies here in the US get tax breaks and so on yet sell the meds to people in the US at MUCH higher costs than they do to other countries..It should be reveresed IMO...But the point is not that its just the drug companies they point is...and DO read it again ..is that its the pharmacies ...Some of you have said you shop around me too..I can go to Canada and buy the same drug..MADE IN THE US...FOR LESS than HALF of what I pay here...I do not have a COSCO near me..Walmart is a huge company and buys in mega bulk...yet cosco came in under them...membership doesnt play into it..I get a lot of my meds and Walgreens...not long ago I think? it was GM dropped them as an RX provider under their RX plan saying they were too irregular ...On some meds..I go to a local pharmacy it use to be a Rexall ots family owned...I get many of my meds for LESS than my copay and if I buy 100 or 200 tabs its even less...DID YOU KNOW IN MANY CASES 100 PILLS ARE LESS THEN 30?? YEP ITS TRUE.....Thats all...just check your prices out and rage on cause they are squeezing us in the whole medical field....drugs mostly....I was in ER not too long ago..for giving me a VALIUM and Tylonal 3 I was charged 300.00 dollars to HAND me the meds

</font><blockquote><div id="quote"><font class="small">Quote:</font>
I was in ER not too long ago..for giving me a VALIUM and Tylonal 3 I was charged 300.00 dollars to HAND me the meds


</div></font></blockquote><font class="post"> That's awful! I know it's true, I've seen it plenty of times. The price for a pkg. of kleenix and other small items is also ridiculous in the hospital. (((((((Sleeps))))))))

</font><blockquote><div id="quote"><font class="small">Quote:</font>
I was in ER not too long ago..for giving me a VALIUM and Tylonal 3 I was charged 300.00 dollars to HAND me the meds


</div></font></blockquote><font class="post"> That's awful! I know it's true, I've seen it plenty of times. The price for a pkg. of kleenix and other small items is also ridiculous in the hospital. (((((((Sleeps))))))))

You know what it is? The pharmacists are taking all of our money and buying chocolate! Yes, vast quantities of chocolate! And having wonderful chocolate parties, with brownies, and chocolate chip cookies, and hot fudge sundaes, and truffles....yes, that's where all of our money is going. The pharmaceutical companies use all of their profits for chocolate too! Ha! We thought they were doing research, but NOOOOOO....more chocolate. Yes. Chocolate kisses. Hershey's Special Dark Bars. Reeses' Peanut Butter Cups. Millions of pounds of chocolate. They hide it when we walk into the drugstores, so we don't see. And we don't get any that's the crime of it all........we don't get to share in the chocolate.....waaaahhhhhhhhhhhh



Just kidding of course,
ErinBear

You know what it is? The pharmacists are taking all of our money and buying chocolate! Yes, vast quantities of chocolate! And having wonderful chocolate parties, with brownies, and chocolate chip cookies, and hot fudge sundaes, and truffles....yes, that's where all of our money is going. The pharmaceutical companies use all of their profits for chocolate too! Ha! We thought they were doing research, but NOOOOOO....more chocolate. Yes. Chocolate kisses. Hershey's Special Dark Bars. Reeses' Peanut Butter Cups. Millions of pounds of chocolate. They hide it when we walk into the drugstores, so we don't see. And we don't get any that's the crime of it all........we don't get to share in the chocolate.....waaaahhhhhhhhhhhh



Just kidding of course,
ErinBear

EXACTLY I was stunned but not shocked Ozzie..its crazy....If I knew I would have said write me and RX for a million I can fill it cheaper
I umm haven't paid them

ERINBEAR,,,LMFAO I almost missed this sometimes the site moves so fast...BUSTED GIRL..I caught this one Missy and me thinks you are on a Chocolate jones

First, let me say that drug company profits are obscene, no doubt. There are however, a couple of price factors that haven't been mentioned in this thread, I think...first, there are commissions for the sales force. Those well-dressed folks you see rolling suitcases into, out of and around hospitals and doctor's offices are the salespeople...they make a very good living passing out all those samples and swag to your docs. Second, advertising costs...all you have to understand that these companies are spending a TON on advertising is watch TV for an hour...

That brings us to the costs of insurance and liability, as well as administrative costs, including truly obscene CEO salaries....I'm sure I'm forgetting something, too...such as charitable giving. I don't know about any others, but Eli Lilly has given tens of millions to religious institutions, generally mainline Protestant churches, much of it for youth work.

None of this justifies the prices we have to pay, but I do believe that we need to think of all the costs involved before we start claiming profit margins of a half-million percent.

Old numbers here, but illuminating: http://www.actupny.org/reports/

DJ

Hi Sleeps,

Ah, you finally found it - LOL

Yeah, I'm here wanting chocolate, but I can't have it any longer due to dietary restrictions. Nuts. Sometimes chocolate is good medicine. And much cheaper than the pharmaceutical stuff. I've tried carob and it's nice but...just not the same..... siggggghhhhhh

Hugs,
ErinBear

sorry this is very off topic

hugs

(( ERINBEAR )) lol go get a dang choc bunny for easter dietary or not and eat his ears off Carbob will NOT curb this JONES

Hi Sleeps,

Thanks, I can't - it makes me sick now, it causes me pain. It's not the "carb" thing. Maybe you can eat an extra nibble of chocolate for me on Easter. I imagine I'll have some other sort of treat, maybe some strawberries or something?

hugs,
ErinBear