Saving Money on Your Prescription Drugs: Good and Bad Ideas

Feel like the bill for your prescription drugs just keeps getting higher every time you go to the pharmacy? You could be right. Since 1990, U.S. spending for prescription drugs has increased by five times. In roughly the same period of time, retail prices of medications have risen almost 8% every year -- three times higher than the rate of inflation.

If you're trying to save on your prescription drugs, you're hardly alone. The good news is that there are a lot of popular, safe, and effective ways to do it. The bad news is that there are a lot of popular, not-so-safe and not-so-effective ways, too. To help you sort the good ideas from the bad, WebMD got some advice from prescription drug experts.

Good Idea: Talk to Your Doctor About Switching to a Generic Medicine

One of the smartest ways to get cheap prescription drugs is to switch from a brand name to a generic. "Generic drugs can offer a huge savings to patients," says Kevin Schulman, MD, professor of medicine and business administration at the Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C. On average, brand-name drugs are three times more expensive than generic drugs.

"Depending on the drugs you take, you could conceivably save hundreds of dollars a month by switching to generics," says Richard Sagall, MD, president and co-founder of NeedyMeds, a Philadelphia nonprofit that provides information about financial assistance for drugs.

There are a lot of generic options, too. "Sixty percent of all prescriptions in the U.S. are generic," Schulman says. More are available all the time. "Some of the generics we have now were brand name drugs just two or three years ago," Schulman tells WebMD. So when you go to the doctor next, ask if any of your high-priced prescription medicines now have a generic equivalent.

Bad Idea: Switch to an Alternative or Herbal Medication

The magazine ads and infomercials can be pretty tempting. Why not try out an "herbal" or "natural" alternative to high-priced prescription drugs? But while they might be cheaper, they might also be completely ineffective or, worse, dangerous.

"It's really confusing for people, because they just don't realize that herbal products are not regulated at all," says Schulman. Despite whatever claims are made in the ads, no one is testing these supplements to see if they work.

"Using one of these supplements to treat a serious medical condition could be life-threatening," says Schulman. Don't do it.

Good Idea: Get Higher-Dosage Pills and Split Them in Half

Some medications cost about the same, per pill, no matter what the dosage. An 80-milligram tablet of a drug might cost no more than a 40-milligram tablet. This quirky pricing gives you a big opportunity to save. Your doctor could write a prescription for double the dosage you actually need. Once you get the pills, you just split them in half with a pill cutter. And, presto, you've got two pills for the price of one -- more or less.

However, not all medications can be split safely. For instance, drugs that have special coatings or are slow-release should never be cut in half: you could wind up with side effects or a dosage that's too high. Your doctor will be very cautious in suggesting which of your pills can be cut, if any.