Shopping around for prescriptions
Prescription drug prices vary by more than 10 per cent in pharmacies, according to a survey of the prices of six products in eight premises.
In the case of one product, Nu-Seal Aspirin, which is used for heart disease, there was considerably more variation in price because, as it is also available as an over-the-counter (OTC) product, some pharmacies charge for it at the lower OTC price. Unprescribed, it costs around €3.60. Prescribed, it cost €7.19 in one Limerick pharmacy, a 100 per cent price difference.
Otherwise, the biggest variation - a 10.7 per cent difference - was with Lipostat, a cholesterol-reducing drug; €54.43 in Limerick and €49.16 in Boots, whose prices are the same in all its outlets in the Republic.
Viagra, used to treat male impotency, had the least price variation in the survey - it was cheapest in Co Galway at €45.30, and most expensive in Limerick, at €46.03.
• The Drugs Payment Scheme limits the cost of prescription drugs, medicines and medical/ surgical devices for individuals or their dependants to €78 in any calendar month.
Any cost above that amount is covered by the State. The scheme applies to anybody with a PPS number and his/her dependants. No medical card is necessary. Registration forms are available from pharmacies, GP surgeries and health board offices. Completed forms should be sent to the local health board office. Applicants then receive a number which they give to their pharmacist who will then process the claim.
The threshold was raised to €78 from €70 on January 1st despite significant increases in costs for consumers/ patients. The scheme has been in operation since July, 1999, when the threshold was £42 (€53.33).