This was one of the fastest hoaxes we have busted,
probably because we are so used to busting false emails circulating that
Boycott Watch has developed an eye for these things, and we have got
myth-busting down to a science.
Here's the scoop: An email is
circulating claiming a US Government official is telling people to go to Costco
because they have gotten around high drug prices by buying off shore.
Here's the problem:
1) The alleged author of the email does not
exist.
2) The phone number is assigned to a different department, and
neither department deals in drugs or the pricing thereof.
3) Government
officials are not permitted to recommend any specific brands or businesses.
4) The email does not take into account the recuperation of research
expenses drug companies are entitled to.
The email is correct in the
fact that you do not need to be a member of Costco to use their pharmacy and
you will pay the same price members pay. As for prices, we did not compare the
prices since generic and brand-name drug prices can fluctuate with the market
and geographical location due to different shipping and other costs, therefore
any comparison could be outdated before it was published, which poses another
question into the validity of the email in question.
As for price, yes,
generic drug prices are cheaper because the developing company has to pay for
the research to create he drug that the generic manufacturer does not have to.
This is why new medicines and name brand drugs cost more.
Conclusion:
The email is a hoax, and may be either a stealth-marketing campaign for Costco
or just a fake email from a satisfied Costco pharmacy customer. In either case,
the numbers listed do not matter, as people can always save money buy shopping
around for prescription drugs and optioning for generic equivalents, just as
people can for anything they wish to purchase.
In summary, when an
email circulated with a false signature, readers should be cautious when using
the information, and the email in question has too many red flags for anyone to
take it seriously, but some people will, which is why the email has been
circulating, thus why we are publishing our report. |
You need to REALLY read this.............Important prescription information.
COSTCO! read this...
Let's hear it for Costco!! (This is just mind-boggling!) Make sure you
read all the way past the list of the drugs.
The woman that signed below is a Budget Analyst out of federal
Washington, DC offices.
Did you ever wonder how much it costs a drug company for the active
ingredient in prescription medications? Some people think it must cost a
lot, since many drugs sell for more than $2.00 per tablet.
We did a search of offshore chemical synthesizers that supply the active
ingredients found in drugs approved by the FDA.
As we have revealed in past issues of Life Extension, a significant
percentage of drugs sold in the United States contain active ingredients
made in other countries.
In our independent investigation of how much profit drug companies really
make, we obtained the actual price of active ingredients used in some of
the most popular drugs sold in America.
The data below speaks for itself.
Celebrex: 100 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $130.27
Cost of general active ingredients: $ 0.60
Percent markup: 21,712%
Claritin: 1 0 mg
Consumer Price (100 tablets): $215.17
Cost of general active ingredients: $0.71
Percent markup: 30,306%
Keflex: 250 mg
Consumer Price (100 tablets): $157.39
Cost of general active ingredients: $1.88
Percent markup: 8,372%
Lipitor: 20 mg
Consumer Price (100 tablets): $272.37
Cost of general active ingredients: $5.80
Percent markup: 4,696%
Norvasc: 10 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $188.29 Cost of general active ingredients:
$0.14
Percent markup: 134,493%
Paxil: 20 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $220.27
Cost of general active ingredients: $7.60
Percent markup: 2,898%
Prevacid: 30 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $44.77
Cost of general active ingredients: $1.01
Percent markup: 34,136%
Prilosec: 20 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $360.97
Cost of general active ingredients $0.52
Percent markup: 69,417%
Prozac: 20 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets) : $247.47
Cost of general active ingredients: $0.11
Percent markup: 224,973%
Tenormin: 50 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $104.47
Cost of general active ingredients: $0.13
Percent markup: 80,362%
Vasotec: 10 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $102.37
Cost of general active ingredients: $0.20
Percent markup: 51,185%
Xanax: 1 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets) : $136.79
Cost of general active ingredients: $0.024
Percent markup: 569,958%
Zestril: 20 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets) $89.89
Cost of general active ingredients $3.20
Percent markup: 2,809
Zithromax: 600 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $1,482.19
Cost of general active ingredients: $18.78
Percent markup: 7,892%
Zocor: 40 mg
Consumer price (100 tablets): $350.27
Cost of general active ingredients: $8.63
Percent markup: 4,059%
Zoloft: 50 mg
Consumer price: $206.87
Cost of general active ingredients: $1.75
Percent markup: 11,821%
Since the cost of prescription drugs is so outrageous, I thought everyone
should know about this.
Please read the following and pass it on.
It pays to shop around.
This helps to solve the mystery as to why they
can afford to put a Walgreen's on every corner.
On Monday night, Steve Wilson, an investigative reporter for Channel 7
News in Detroit, did a story on generic drug price gouging by pharmacies.
He found in his investigation, that some of these generic drugs were
marked up as much as 3,000% or more.
Yes, that's not a typo.....three thousand percent!
So often, we blame the drug companies for the high cost of drugs, and
usually rightfully so.
But in this case, the fault clearly lies with the pharmacies themselves.
For example, if you had to buy a prescription
drug, and bought the name brand, you might pay $100 for 100 pills.
The pharmacist might tell you that if you get the generic equivalent,
they would only cost $80, making you think you are "saving" $20.
What the pharmacist is not telling you is that those 100 generic pills
may have only cost him $10!
At the end of the report, one of the anchors asked Mr. Wilson whether or
not there were any pharmacies that did not adhere to this practice, and
he said that Costco consistently charged little over their cost for the
generic drugs.
I went to the Costco site, where you can look up any drug, and get its
online price.
It says that the in-store prices are consistent with the
online prices.
I was appalled.
Just to give you one example from my own
experience, I had to use the drug, Compazine, which helps prevent nausea
in chemo patients.
I used the generic equivalent, which cost $54.99 for
60 pills at CVS. I checked the price at Costco, and I could have bought
100 pills for $19.89.
For 145 of my pain pills, I paid $72.57.
I could have got 150 at Costco for $28.08.
I would like to mention, that although Costco is a "membership" type
store, you do NOT have to be a member to buy prescriptions there, as it
is a federally regulated substance.
You just tell them at the door that you wish to use the pharmacy, and
they will let you in. (this is true)
I went there this past Thursday and asked them.
I am asking each of you to please help me by copying this letter, and
passing it into your own e-mail, and send it to everyone you know with an
e-mail address.
Sharon L. Davis
Budget Analyst
U.S . Department of Commerce
Room 6839
Office Ph: 202-482-4458
Office Fax: 202-482-5480
E-mail Address: sdavis@doc.gov
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