When paying for drugs with insurance costs more than paying cash: Bill would require pharmacists to let their customers know

It seems logical that customers buying prescription drugs with insurance should pay less than if they pay the entire cost themselves. But sometimes, that is not the case, and patients end up unknowingly paying more if they use insurance.

"Pharmacists I talk to are very upset about this, because they see where patients are paying more for this medicine than they should," said Todd Brown, executive director of the Massachusetts Independent Pharmacists Association and vice chairman of the department of pharmacy at Northeastern University.

A bill pending before the Massachusetts Legislature would require pharmacists to tell customers if the cost for paying in cash would be less than their insurance co-pay.

"Most people are under the understanding that the purpose of using insurance to purchase anything that's health care related should result in a lower price for them," said Sen. Jim Welch, D-West Springfield, Senate chairman of the Committee on Health Care Financing. "That's what insurance is all about."

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