Wal-Mart drops prices of arthritis meds; Target follows
With the price of gasoline topping $4 per gallon, budgets are tight. However, one small glimmer of relief has appeared -- in the medicine cabinet.
U.S. retailer Wal-Mart announced earlier this month that it is expanding its low-cost generic drug program. Previously, one-month supplies of various drugs could be purchased for $4. Now, 90-day supplies will also be available for $10.
Being generic, the included arthritis and pain medications are not the newest treatments available. But they are also not nearly as expensive.
The current list of "Arthritis / Pain" medications offered in the program includes:
- allopurinol 100mg
- allopurinol 300mg
- baclofen 10mg
- colchicine 0.6mg
- cyclobenzaprine 5mg
- cyclobenzaprine 10mg
- dexamethasone 0.5mg
- dexamethasone 0.75mg
- dexamethasone 4mg
- diclofenac dr 75mg
- ibuprofen 100mg / suspension 5mL
- ibuprofen 400mg
- ibuprofen 600mg
- ibuprofen 800mg
- indomethacin 25mg
- meloxicam 7.5mg
- meloxicam 15mg
- naproxen 375mg
- naproxen 500mg
- piroxicam 20mg
- salsalate 500mg
Our own Seth Ginsberg noted the inlusion of meloxicam. In the past, a 90-day supply cost him $150. Now it costs 93 percent less.
The list also includes suspension Ibuprofen, a popular pain management tool for children.
Wal-Mart Senior Vice President John Agwunobi explained to the Associated Press (AP) that the expansion "was designed to help customers at a time of exorbitant health-care costs and difficult economic times." It has also increased traffic in the chain's pharmacies, as noted by industry analysts.
Wal-Mart's pricing program applies to its mail-order and online pharmacy stores, as well as all in-store Wal-Mart, Neighborhood Market, and Sam's Club pharmacies (except in North Dakota, where the pharmacies are run by third parties).
Soon after the announcement, Target -- the nation's second-largest retailer -- told the Wall Street Journal that it would "match all facets of Wal-Mart's discounted generic drug and [over the counter] drug plans."
To read the AP article announcing the price drop, a full listing of included drugs, or medicalnewstoday.com's report, click on one of the links below:
Article References
Wal-Mart expands low-price drug program; Target follows, site accessed on 05/19/08
Wal-Mart Pharmacy: $4 Presciptions Program, site accessed on 05/19/08
Wal-Mart Generic Drug Program To Begin Offering 90-Day Supplies, site accessed on 05/19/08
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