While waiting in line to pick up a prescription, you’ve probably noticed those little yellow and white business cards at the pharmacy counter offering savings—and wondered if they’re legitimate. With the rising cost of medications, any relief for our wallets is welcome.
We recently spoke with Divya Iyer, senior Vice president of Go-to-Market Strategy at GoodRx, the leading platform for medication savings in the U.S. that helps nearly 30 million consumers and over one million healthcare professionals each year. GoodRx is behind those savings cards at the pharmacy, and Iyer answered the questions most people have about them. Here’s what she shared.
Q. What is GoodRx?
A. GoodRx is the leading platform for medication savings in the U.S., used by nearly 30 million consumers and more than one million healthcare professionals annually. Our consumer-facing app and website help consumers find and access savings on generic and brand-name medications at more than 70,000 pharmacies nationwide.
By reducing friction and inefficiencies, GoodRx helps consumers save time and money when filling prescriptions so they can get the care they deserve.
Q. Who should use the service?
A. Many people don’t realize that the price of a single prescription medication can vary by more than $100 from one pharmacy to the next. GoodRx is designed for anyone in the U.S. looking to save on their medications, whether or not they have insurance. GoodRx can even be used to find savings for pet medications. Anyone can utilize GoodRx regardless of their insurance status–in fact, 90 percent of GoodRx users have insurance, and the GoodRx price beats the average commercial insurance co-pay by more than 50 percent of the time.
Q. Who should NOT use the service?
A. GoodRx is designed to help people save on their medications, but there are a few scenarios where it may not be the best option. If your insurance co-pay is lower than the GoodRx discount, you’ll likely want to use your insurance.
Q. Does using the service cost anything?
A. No, GoodRx is 100 percent free. There are no fees and zero obligations. But if you’re looking for even deeper savings, we do offer GoodRx Gold, a monthly membership service that is ideal for individuals or families who take multiple medications. The program costs $9.99 per month for individuals and $19.99 per month for families, both of which offer greater savings and include free home delivery and access to telehealth visits with a licensed healthcare professional starting at $19 per visit.
Q. How to use the service?
A. Simply go to the GoodRx website or app and type in the name of your medication. You’ll be able to compare and shop for the best price. At the pharmacy counter, you’ll present your GoodRx coupon to the pharmacist instead of your insurance card. The pharmacist will then run the transaction with the codes on your coupon instead of using insurance.
Q. Should you use it even if you have health insurance? Or Medicare/Medicaid?
A. Yes, GoodRx can be a complement to insurance that fills in the gaps the system doesn’t cover. Anyone can use GoodRx regardless of their insurance status. To determine if it’s best to use your insurance vs. GoodRx, just check your medication price on the GoodRx app or website. When you go to the pharmacy counter, have them check your price with your insurance applied. If you find a better price with GoodRx than what your insurance is asking you to pay, tell your pharmacist you want to pay cash with a GoodRx coupon instead of paying with your insurance.
Q. Why should you use GoodRx?
A. GoodRx can help you save money and find the medications you need, even when your insurance falls short. Every month, one out of every three Americans leave prescriptions unfilled at the pharmacy counter due to cost. With increasingly high prescription costs, shrinking insurance coverage and more hurdles like prior authorizations (where a health plan’s approval is required before it will cover certain services or prescriptions), more of the cost burden has shifted to the consumer.
With GoodRx, you can find lower prices–often even cheaper than your insurance co-pay–for the medications you need. Since 2011, GoodRx has helped consumers save more than $85 billion on their medications, with discounts of up to 80 percent.
Q. Are there times when GoodRx doesn’t work?
A. GoodRx provides access to savings for generic and brand-name medications at more than 70,000 participating pharmacies nationwide, but occasionally, certain medications may not have a discounted price available. If you need assistance finding or accessing a medication or experience any other issues with using a GoodRx discount at the pharmacy, you can get support at GoodRx Help (www.goodrx.com).
