Website checks up on prices at pharmacies
Searching all pharmacies in Broward and Miami-Dade
counties can reveal astonishing price differences.
You can see that a 30-day supply of 40-milligram
fluoxetine (generic Prozac) in Broward can range from
$4 at a Wal-Mart in Miramar to $180.34 at Colonial
Drug in Pompano Beach. In Miami-Dade, the website
says you can pay from $57.99 at Sedano's pharmacies
to $246 at Central Pharmacy on Calle Ocho.
For the popular cholesterol-lowering Lipitor, you
can get 30 mg tablets in Broward for $108.84 at Health
Alliance in Davie or $153.40 at Skyemed Pharmacy in
Pompano. In Miami-Dade, the reported range is $82.90
at Citrus Health Network in Hialeah to $253.13 at
P&D Pharmacy, also in Hialeah. The website can
give you some helpful comparisons, but be careful:
Some pharmacies are not listed, including those in
stores run by Target, Kmart and Costco. Many Publix
and Wal-Marts also aren't on the website.
The listings are based on places that dispense medications
through the Medicaid program for the poor. Those pharmacies
must provide monthly updates to the state on all their
pricing levels, including "usual and customary,"
which is the basis for what the state pays.
Wal-Mart and Target are selling some major generic
brands for $4 for a month's supply, and Kmart is offering
90-day supplies of some generics for $15.
