Paying for prescription drugs

Consumers need to consider all the angles when choosing and filling prescription drugs.

For example, under many prescription drug coverage insurance plans, a consumer pays a higher co-pay to fill a prescription at a store and a lower one when using mail order.

In addition, plans often have co-pay “tiers.” The first tier is for a generic drug; the second is for a brand-name drug. Sometimes, there are three tiers: The second tier is for preferred brand-name drugs and third for a non-preferred brand-name drugs.

The same drug can cost as little as $6.66 for a 30-day supply or as much as $40, depending on what you buy and where and how you buy it.

Typical fixed-dollar co-payments in tiered drug-coverage plans

Two-tier plans:

Tier 1 30-day retail supply: $10

Tier 1 90-day mail order supply: $20

Tier 2 30-day retail supply: $20

Tier 2 90-day mail order supply: $30

Three-tier plans:

Tier 1 30-day retail supply: $10

Tier 1 90-day mail-order supply: $25

Tier 2 30-day retail supply: $25

Tier 2 90-day mail-order supply: $50

Tier 3 30-day retail supply: $40

Tier 3 90-day mail-order supply: $80

Source: Medco Health Solutions Inc., 2007 Drug Trend Report

— Shari Roan