Medicare.gov to compare pharmacy prescription prices USA

Main Category: Public Health
Article Date: 14 Apr 2004 - 0:00 PDT

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Consumers can obtain prices by ZIP code, get information about drug discount cards.

As part of implementation of the discount drug card provisions of last year's Medicare legislation, the Medicare.gov Web site will begin on April 29 posting information on the retail prices of most prescription drugs. The move will shine "a bright light on some of the biggest secrets in the health care industry," the New York Times maintained in a news article. Questions about drug prices have already started, APhA member Page Dunlap of Hartselle, Ala., told the Times.

Listed will be comparisons of prices for medications used to treat a given condition, including generic alternatives. The Web site will provide prices for an estimated 60,000 products sold at 75,000 pharmacies nationwide The prices will reflect those charged in a given ZIP code, and the retail prices for drugs under each discount drug card will be available. The pricing information, according to HHS, is to help Medicare beneficiaries choose the best discount drug card program among private entities and the government. The cards become available in May.

Web site visitors can also compare discounted prices negotiated by card sponsors, enrollment fees, and other card program features. An accompanying toll-free phone number is also available for those seniors not comfortable with computers and the Internet (800-MEDICARE). Although the price comparisons may be a help to Medicare beneficiaries, they may provide too much information for many seniors, some experts were quoted as saying in the Times article, citing an already high degree of confusion and anxiety.

DestinationRx, a small software company, helped develop this capability of the Medicare site.

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