Why did you have to go to a Doctor to get a prescripton, that you then have to go to a pharmacist to have filled, just to get the medicine you need? Did he write for a generic or the higher priced drug that he gets a kick-back from the pharm-corporation for?

Many countries do not have this time consuming and ackward system that double charges the hell out of you with unnecessary trips to a doctor just to get medicine needed. More people could afford their drugs if not saddled with an office visit to a doctor just to refill medications.

I noticed that a lot of out of country pharamacys are selling on line these days, so it begs the question why the greatest FREEDOM country controls your medications and what kind you get and how much you are going to pay for it? Are you a child and cannot go and buy your medications? Can't you tell a pharamacist your problem and let him pick out the drug for the cure? The government thinks your too stupid as a rugged individualist to handle that.

http://www.pharmacysources.com/
http://www.getmedsdirect.com/terms.htm
http://www.freedom-pharmacy.com/default.asp
http://www.healthychoicepharmacy.com/default.asp
http://www.nicepricepharmacy.com/default.asp

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One Tin Soldier Walked Away....................

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p...tionkill-1.jpg

Hey there,

Normally I agree with you on PF issues. However, I don't on this one. haha Let me explain.

The role of the pharmacist in medications is ensuring that the proper dosage and quantity are allotted depending on what the prescription says. The prescription must be written by a physician who has prior knowledge of health conditions, medication allergies, current formulary, etc. Can you imagine the wait at the pharmacy if you had to go through this with the pharmacist every time you needed a medication?

Also, pharmacy school is a specialty school. Similar to the way that surgeons and pediatric physicians are specialists, so are pharmacists. Their area of expertise is the impact of medications on the biochemistry of the body, something not all specialists would be able to tell you. Asking a pharmacist to diagnose a health condition would be like asking a pediatrician to administer anesthesia during surgery - probably not the smartest idea.

While I do agree that there are problems with the pharmaceutical industry, I can't concede giving the power of prescription to pharmacists. After all, it's rarely a pharmacy that gives the kick back, but the pharmaceutical company. In fact, who's to say that if the prescription power were to change hands, that pharmacists wouldn't just cash in instead of physicians?

In my opinion, this is why we have the freedom to ask questions when we're at the doctor. When you get a prescription, ask questions - what does it do? do I really need it? is there a generic? All of those questions will help the consumer save money, as well as get the physicians to try alternatives before prescribing a brand name drug that likely has a high copay.

Also, if it's just a refill, see if you can get your doctor to call it in to the pharmacy to save you a trip to the office. This happens all the time and most doctors are glad to help their patients. If it's a new prescription, or if it's something you've been on for a while, then it's likely that you'll need to be seen by the physician. This is normal because your doctor will hopefully want to evaluate your condition before asking you to continue your medication. Perhaps you don't even need it anymore...

Also, if you're taking something ongoing, ask your doctor if he'll double the strength so you can cut your pill in half and get 60 uses out of 30 pills. These are all good money-saving tips. As someone who works in the health care industry, I realize that cost is a huge motivating factor in whether people get the drugs they need. However, there are controls on prescriptions for the safety of public.

Not all systems are free of corruption, however, and this will always be the case.

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Blind acceptance is a dangerous practice.

Hell...I say give it to them.

...but if they make themselves sick, or O.D. on them, they get no medical coverage. "Personal responsibility" and all that.

It's just "thinning the herd."