Karen takes Nexium for her heartburn once a day.
Karen’s copay: $600 a year
Actual prescription cost: $2,400 a year

Who pays the difference? We all do.
Drug prices continue to climb at a rate double that of inflation, and we’re all paying the price.

You may think your copayment for your brand name heartburn medication is excessive at $50. But do you know what your prescription actually cost? Often your insurance is paying hundreds — if not thousands — of dollars for the medication, in addition to what you pay out of pocket.

Americans are using more prescription drugs than ever before, and those drugs are more expensive than ever, helping contribute to higher health insurance premiums:

1. Wellmark spent over $720 million on prescription drugs in 2009, up more than 9% from 2008.
2. 75% of that $720 million was spent on brand-name drugs, versus only 25% on less expensive but just as effective generic alternatives.
3. On average, brand name drug prices increased nearly 8% in 2009, while generic drugs increased less than 3%.
4. More members are taking drugs to treat problems that were not approved by the FDA for that drug (off-label use). Wellmark pays an estimated $120 million yearly for off-label use.

3 Things You Can Do
1. Know the actual cost. A good way to keep prescription costs — and any health care cost — under control is to make your purchasing decisions as if you are financially responsible for the entire bill. Find the actual retail price of prescription medications on the Wellmark Drug List.

2. Buy generic. One easy way to cut your pharmacy bill is to ask your doctor or pharmacist for a generic whenever you have a prescription filled. See a cost comparision for common brand name drugs vs. generic alternatives.

3. Say “no" to samples. Free prescription drug samples from your doctor sure look like a great deal. But once the samples are gone, you may end up paying a lot more. Calculate the cost of "free" samples vs. a generic.

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