If you are suffering from a chronic disease, you can understand just how expensive it can be to treat medical conditions, especially if they are recurring or take a long time to heal.
While medication for certain diseases such as cancer treatment and medication for diabetes is infamous for being expensive, even simple drugs like antibiotics can be costly depending on the kind of antibiotic you are taking and how frequently you are required to use it.
It is a little easier to afford these expensive drugs for people with medical coverage, but for those that are financing their own medical care, it can be a burden.
Because the medication is only one part of the entire process, as a whole, treating a medical condition can get very pricey.
Here are a few tips that you can use to save yourself some money when you are buying antibiotics, or help a friend make their treatment a little bit more affordable.
1. Unbranded Drugs
If your doctor has recommended a certain drug for a problem, you actually need the chemical or the formula in that antibiotic, not that specific pill.
There are a ton of unbranded, generic drugs on the market that offer the exact same formula as their branded counterparts but are significantly cheaper since they do not represent a specific brand.
Doctors rarely suggest an unbranded drug as they are inclined to only suggest those drugs they are affiliated with and products from companies that give them benefit for recommending their medicines.
One of the reasons why branded drugs are expensive is because these companies invest a significant amount of money in marketing and creating affiliate programs that support doctors in recommending their products.
2. Higher Dosage
Following this tip is useful, especially if you are buying your medication from a big box store; you can be much better off getting the drug in larger quantities.
Compared to a two-week subscription, consider getting a 30-day supply or even a 90-day supply of your antibiotics. The medical professionals at Medications Canada suggest that as long as you store the medications correctly and use them within their suggested consumption dates, there is nothing to worry about.
By buying in larger quantities, you can save your usual time spent on bi-weekly purchases, as well as a considerable amount of money.
3. Splitting
Just like how you can get larger supplies of your medicines, you could also get larger pills. Instead of going for several 5mg pills, for example, you could get 10mg pills and split them into smaller portions to get the dosage you need.
However, certain medications, such as slow-digesting pills and capsules, can’t be split and have to be used whole. So if what you’re taking is one of those that can be split, you can save a lot of money by buying larger pills and use them as you need.
4. Assistance
You might be eligible for support from the government, an NGO, nonprofit groups, and even drug manufacturers. You can apply for support if you meet the requirements and they will help you in buying medicines.
5. Compare
Canvassing is always a good idea before purchasing an item from a seller and this is just as true with medicines as it is for any other product. Pharmacies sell drugs according to the price that they are getting from their vendor. Similarly, big box stores might be able to offer you more competitive prices since they are working directly with the manufacturer.
There can be a lot of variation in retail prices for drugs so be sure to have a look around before you invest.
6. Revise Your Plan
If you are part of a support plan or have an insurance provider helping you out as well in buying drugs then you might want to look into this plan after a year to make sure the plan is still relevant.
Going through this plan is also important to check whether or not you are getting the most for your money. These plans often change or are revised to meet the new market conditions.
Even though medical care is an expensive facility to use, you can still save a lot of money in terms of how much it costs you to purchase medicines. With a bit of planning, an intelligent purchasing approach, and some knowledge about businesses in your area, you could potentially save a lot of money on buying medicines.
As long as you are buying from authentic sellers and you know that you are getting the right products, then getting your antibiotics shouldn’t be a problem.
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