Putting the Boots in - see-saw pricing

Capri

Boots big announcement - 'Perscription prices down'

Not for long -:eek:

Boots admits its prices for some drugs will increase within days

A LEADING pharmacy chain has admitted that some of its medicine prices will rise because of changes to its drug pricing structure.

The Irish Independent has learned that Boots Ireland is ready to increase the price of many top-selling medications despite its claim to be lowering the cost.

The prices of many of the most commonly prescribed heart, blood pressure, thyroid and anti-anxiety medications are among those that will rise when the company changes its prices from Friday.

For example, low dosage aspirin used to thin the blood -- the most commonly prescribed medicine in Ireland -- is due to have its price raised from €8.36 to €9.24 a packet, an increase of 11pc. The price of Eltroxin (levothyroxine) used to treat thyroid problems -- the third most commonly prescribed medicine -- will rise from €7.69 to €8.79 per packet, a 14pc hike.

The cost of anti-anxiety drug diazepam (valium) will also rise from €8.27 to €9.18 a packet, an 11pc increase.

Director of Pharmacy Mary Rose Burke said the rise in some prices was because the chain has overhauled its pricing structure and replaced retail percentage markups with a €7 fixed fee on top of the wholesale price of the drug.

While that means substantial reductions for more expensive medications, the price of some low-cost drugs will rise.

Ms Burke said that the retailer's aim was not to be the cheapest but to make medicines fundamentally more affordable with quality service, and the changes would benefit customers to the tune of €1m a year.

The Irish Independent has repeatedly highlighted the high prices Boots charges for prescription drugs over the last year, coming out as the most expensive in a number of investigations.

But in a blaze of publicity this week the chain announced new lower prices claiming customers would save up to 25pc on the price of prescription medicines such as Lipitor, Plavix and Nexium.

Markups

The move does appear to have provoked a price war as Sam McCauley chemists yesterday also announced "huge savings" for their customers, by abolishing all markups and replacing them with a flat fee of €6.95 at their 26 chemist shops nationwide.

The price of prescription drugs still varies enormously despite this week's price cuts according to a survey by the Irish Independent.

For example, the price of a packet of cholesterol-lowering drug atorvastatin ranges from €18.06 at Tesco to €39.36 at Boots, while the branded variety Lipitor costs more at all pharmacy chains.

And the price of thyroid medication Eltroxin (levothyroxine) ranges from €5.76 at Unicare to €8.79 at Boots. for blood pressure drug Bisoprolol the price ranges from €5.89 at Tesco to €10.48 at Boots.

- Aideen Sheehan Consumer Correspondent

Irish Independent

Nanazolie

surprise surprise... Boots have always been the most expensive for prescriptions.

Why can't prescription only medecines prices be fixed by the government?

Fighting Irish

Nanazolie wrote: »

surprise surprise... Boots have always been the most expensive for prescriptions.

Why can't prescription only medecines prices be fixed by the government?

No competition is a bad thing, ultimately the shoppers set the prices

wmpdd3

Boots have always been the most expensive for prescriptions.

Boots were the cheapest for Yasmin for years, €1 cheaper per month. They were the only chemist at the time that would give me a price over the phone no problem, every other chemist I called wanted to know why I wanted to know and advised me that you shouldn't really be shopping around for prescriptions etc.

Dawn Rider

Nanazolie wrote: »

surprise surprise... Boots have always been the most expensive for prescriptions.

Not just for prescriptions.

Went in to Boots in the Square in Tallaght, for Panadol Extra (Soluble) and found them charging €6.49.
The chemist on the ground floor charged €5.90

Maybe Boots are charged higher rents or insurance.... :rolleyes:

Nanazolie

Fighting Irish wrote: »

No competition is a bad thing, ultimately the shoppers set the prices

Competition should happen on other items than prescriptions, such as OTC medications and all the paraphernalia that chemists sell. In France, prescription prices are regulated, the chemists make their profits on everything else, from beauty to perfume to electrical

Fighting Irish

Nanazolie wrote: »

Competition should happen on other items than prescriptions, such as OTC medications and all the paraphernalia that chemists sell. In France, prescription prices are regulated, the chemists make their profits on everything else, from beauty to perfume to electrical

Sure France is shit

Nanazolie

Fighting Irish wrote: »

Sure France is shit

argumentation not really your forte, is it? :rolleyes:

Geuze

Nanazolie wrote: »

Why can't prescription only medecines prices be fixed by the government?

They are. The Govt set the ex-factory cost and allow a fixed wholesale margin.

See here: www.pcrs.ie

Nanazolie

Thanks Geuze. Pity they can't also regulate the retail prices. I still think medications are not a "commodity" and should not be part of the price competition, profits can be made on other things. Our chemist once told me that prescription didn't account for the majority of the business.

Question: with the drug scheme, can you buy several months worth of prescriptions (for instance if you have 3 repeats, buy them all in one go) and that will be taken into account in the 132€ or will the chemist only count one box for that month? Eg: I have to buy Gabin every month, worth 72€. If I buy two boxes in one go, will I reach the cap or will only one box be accounted for for this month?

Dymo

I bought my subscription medicine in spain last week for €5.13 a box, here the exact same medication costs me €18.87 plus a doctors fee.Exact same box and maker. I know different expenses here but come on that difference is too much, it appears for viable competition you have to try a different country.

Geuze

Nanazolie wrote: »

Thanks Geuze. Pity they can't also regulate the retail prices.

They do, in a sense.

(1) For GMS med card patients, the retail price was / is:

Supply cost + wholesale margin = reimbursement cost

Retail price = reimbursement cost + dispensing fee

So no mark-up to the pharmacy, just a fixed fee, plus any trade discount they get from the three wholesalers.

Geuze

(2) For DPS patients, the retail price was / is:

Supply cost + wholesale margin = reimbursement cost

Retail price = reimbursement cost + 50% mark-up +dispensing fee

The old 50% mark-up was reduced to 20%.

So the pharamcy make 20% mark-up plus a fixed fee, plus any trade discount they get from the three wholesalers.

Geuze

(2) For non-DPS patients, the retail price was / is:

Supply cost + wholesale margin = reimbursement cost

Retail price = reimbursement cost + 50% / 20% mark-up +dispensing fee

In this case, I don't think pharmacies were under any obligation to reduce the old 50% mark-up to 20%.

This is the aspects that Boots have changed.

They have abolished the 50% mark-up on non-DPS private scripts, and increased the fixed fee to 7 euro.

Geuze

http://www.hse.ie/eng/about/Who/cpu/

The HSE's Corporate Pharma Unit.


Here are the agreements with the drug makers:
http://www.hse.ie/eng/about/Who/cpu/agreements.html

Geuze

http://www.hse.ie/eng/about/Who/cpu/

The HSE's Corporate Pharma Unit.


Here are the agreements with the drug makers:
http://www.hse.ie/eng/about/Who/cpu/agreements.html


Lists of drug price cuts:
http://www.hse.ie/eng/about/Who/cpu/PriceReductions.html

Oracle

What I think is interesting here is Boots clever use of words ... they are cutting the price of the top-selling prescription medications. They're not cutting the price of the most popular OTC (over the counter) medications, such as paracetamol, aspirin, ibuprofen, anti-histamine or decongestants. In fact they've admitted they're increasing the price of some of these OTC products. Assuming these products would account for the most sales in any pharmacy, then the price paid by most people who buy medication in Boots will actually increase. So I think the initiative, while welcome, is misleading.

Dawn Rider posted a good example: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=78948952&postcount=5

Daisy M

From what I understand Boots are doing away with the 25% mark up fee and increasing their dispensing fee from 5e to 7e. This will have a knock on effect of making more expensive items much cheaper and less expensive items a little more expensive. So if your prescriptions are normally 50e you will save a signifigant amount. Most gps have a good idea of prescription costs so ask when they prescribe so you know where to go.

Also I read earlier in the year that sometime in 2012 you will only be allowed generic meds on medical cards and the drug payment scheme, if you want a brand name med you will have to pay the difference.