Many pharmacies are refusing to stock certain medications like GLP-1 weight loss drugs because they lose money on them.
There is one solution – more on that in a bit.
Here’s the low-down:
- The byzantine health care system spits out reimbursements that continue to fall and can now be $200 short of what the pharmacy paid to stock the drug.
- Independent pharmacies are getting hit especially hard: In New York, for instance, 98% of stores said they have stopped stocking certain medications, led by weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy.
- Walgreens could be next: It reported a net operating loss of 5% in the last year at its pharmacies.
- CVS is less-affected because it owns its own insurance company and pharmacy benefit manager that control prices.
Here’s one possible work-around:
More pharma companies like Eli Lilly and Pfizer are setting up their own pharmacy programs that guarantee their drugs will be in stock.
Most notably, Lilly is offering its GLP-1 drug Zepbound for $349 through its direct-mail service – compared to the list price at the pharmacy that tops $1,000 without insurance.
Unfortunately, doctors and patients often don’t know about these types of options to find their medicine.
That’s where we at @rxlink-inc come in: We have relationships with e-prescribing platforms that:
- Alert doctors when prescribing a drug that a cheaper, in-stock option is available directly from the manufacturer (or at a competing pharmacy)
- Text patients about the cheapest, in-stock option before they go to the pharmacy
- Reduce prescription abandonment for pharmaceutical brands by informing doctors and patients of their options at the time a prescription is written.
We’ve saved patients millions of dollars and plenty of headaches so far. Contact [email protected] to learn more!