Buyer Be Aware - Prescription Prices

How do you know you're getting the best price for your prescription drugs?
Last September my doctor gave me a new prescription.  I have a High Deductible HSA plan which means I pay the insurance company's discounted price for my drugs until I meet my deductible.  Shortly after my doctor appointment I got a text from the pharmacy that my prescription was ready and my cost was $186.00.  I went to https://www.goodrx.com/ and looked up the drug, dosage and quantity. My cost on the website coupon would be $18.00.

When I went to the pharmacy I asked them if the price I was texted was my actual discounted price through my insurance.  They said it was and I showed them the coupon on my phone and said I would rather do the coupon.  I realize that if I pay cash I won't be able to apply that amount to my HSA health plan deductible - but it was worth it to me to not be out the cash since I never meet my deductible anyway.  I could still pay for the prescription using money from my HSA bank account. The tech looked at my coupon and said "I can do better than that".  She had a coupon on the case register which she scanned.  My price $14.00!

I asked her where all the money would go if I had paid the $186.00 and she rolled her eyes and said "it's complicated".  I suspect that everyone - the pharmacy, the vendor, the health plan and the pharmaceutical company would all get a piece of my action with the "special" price offered through my health plan.

In November I got an email from my health plan telling me about a new benefit.  The Right Price Program automatically compares coupons, discount programs and my carrier negotiated price and gives me the lowest available without me having to shop and compare myself.  I had a test of the program this week. The cost of my prescription was $14.62.

I went to goodRx and double checked - their best price for the same dosage, drug and quantity was $17.67.  It looks like the new program is working - but I will continue to check the prices.

This drug is a generic and the cost is literally pennies a dose.  Most available Medicare Advantage plans offer this drug for $0 copay.  Even the plans with $0 premium have the $0 tier 1 drug copays at preferred pharmacies.  When I get Medicare in 2023 I will continue to check the prices just to keep everyone honest. 

The new Inflation Induction Act provides insulins for $35.  Select plans have some insulins right now for $0 copay.  We will have to see what happens to the free insulin since the law will obviously lower the cost of many of the high priced options - but will big pharma set the floor at $35 to help make up the difference?  It will be another thing to watch going forward.