Save Money by Asking for Samples of Medication

Here's a money saving tip from A Tip a Day with Ellie Kay: 12 Months' Worth of Money-Saving Ideas:

Save on medications by asking for samples. Let your physician know [you'd like free samples of medications you use]. Many doctors will save certain medications for those who need these.

My comments on this:

1. My wife is the queen of asking for samples. If one of us needs a prescription, she'll say "do you have any samples of that medicine that we could use?" A good amount of time, our doctor does.

2. I hadn't thought about asking for medications on an on-going basis because we don't have any on-going prescription needs. I could see how a doctor might do this for someone on a limited budget, but I don't think he would simply to save someone some money. Maybe I'm wrong though. Anyone out there done this?

3. As someone pointed out in another post of mine, this one can work with veterinarians as well. If Fido needs a prescription or certain medication, ask your vet if she has some free samples for you to try.

Comments

[MelMoitzen]

The point of pharmaceutical sampling is to get you started on your medicine immediately, so you can take a day or two to get to the pharmacy to fill your prescription. It's not to provide the entire course of medication for free.

To ask for multiple "starter packs" is no different than hitting up the demo lady at Costco for a sample, and then going back to her again and again and again for the same thing in order to make a complete meal for yourself.

The doctor, frankly, has more incentive in the long run to write the prescription so it can be filled than providing an entire course of free medication. If all he's doing is giving out freebies, the pharmaceutical reps providing the samples will stop calling on him and nobody will get samples.

[ross]

Some pharmaceutical companies have programs for patients who can't afford their drugs.

Because my doctor doesn't allow generic use, I am on one of these programs and get my prescription free on an ongoing basis. If not for this, I would switch physicians and use the generic, but I figure it's worth it. Because of the condition, it is likely to last only a few years.

The name brand of this drug is prohibitively expensive.

[Amelia]

I have done this many times! It's especially useful when you and your Dr are trying to find which medication of many, will work best for you. I have allergies and there are a lot of choices out there.

[Josh]

"Free" samples are free to you, but not me. Somebody has to pay for the freebies, so when you get your free sample, I get $60 for my prescription. If you can afford to pay for the prescription, then do so, and save the samples for somebody who can't.