The US Drug Cartel Almost Robbed Me Blind

Caveat Emptor 

"That will be $90," the cashier noted when I picked up a recent antibiotic prescription.

"But shouldn't my insurance cover some of that?" I asked.

"Yes, but this is for the part insurance doesn't cover."

Naturally, I experienced some sticker shock, given this was a mere month's supply of Doxycycline Hyclate, a generic form of Doryx my ophthalmologist had just prescribed. But I felt I had no choice but to pay with my Visa and prepare to leave.

Then out of curiosity I decided to go back and ask my pharmacist to check what their price would have been had I not been covered by insurance, assuming I had been prescribed one of those very, very expensive drugs we all hear about.

"I'll check it out," he said.

A bit later, he came back, somewhat apologetically, "Our discounted price is $30 without insurance."

He kindly let me pay that amount, saving me a cool $60.

This has me wondering. What kind of healthcare system has people paying three times as much for a drug if they have health insurance coverage than if they don't?

Meanwhile, I found a website with with some very helpful information on drug prices. Here I learned that the average cost for my prescription is $226.55 for 60 100mg. tablets, but with steep discounts available for those not billing insurance. All the information you need can be found at GoodRx.

Lesson? Caveat Emptor (Let the buyer beware).