8 Tips to reduce your medical spending

"Your insurance saved you $199.72 on this prescription." Insurance is expensive. The alternative, though, is almost incomprehensible.

The healthcare industry has been under scrutiny for some time. It has become a subject of endless political debate. However, I'm here to tell you, no matter what the state of the U.S. economy and political majority, that we still have options.

Why? Because there are numerous programs afforded to us that we haven't considered. We are still not in crisis mode. What gives me the ability to say so? My father was (and still is) a small, self employed business, what the healthcare industry has impacted the hardest. During my college years, I went without health insurance (gasp!) and nothing happened to me. A fortunate occurrence? Yes, but not because I had no reason to fear medical expenses. During my time in college, I incurred a hospital visit which tapped out my savings account. No health insurance for me = no negotiated discount on the emergency visit.
Thanks to genetics, I have an inherited condition that requires daily medication. While in college there were several programs that allowed me to take medication at no cost. Had these programs not been available, I would still be able to apply for reduced or free medication from certain insurance companies.

For example, Eli Lilly has a program called Lilly Cares, which makes subsidized medication a reality for those who cannot afford it. According to the website:

Eligibility is based on the patient's inability to pay and lack of third-party
drug payment assistance, including insurance, Medicaid and government,
community, or private programs and cannot be eligible for Medicare. Applications
are available to anyone and must be completed and signed by the patient and the
physician.

That doesn't sound like inaccessibility to me. Add to the fact that taxes in countries that subsidize healthcare reach astronomic proportions, and I'll take the current system, thank you very much.

The problem with free or discounted programs isn't that they don't exist (entirely, although they are significantly limited) but that people don't know where to go to find them.
Now, most of my readers fall somewhere in middle class and are not in dire economic hardship, so let's get back to the topic at hand: what can the continuously squeezed middle class do to help with healthcare spending? Where are these discounts you speak of? Good thing you asked! Here they are, in no particular order:

Enroll in a flexible spending account.

But, Mrs. Cents, I already have a savings account! Well…not this kind.

What’s a flexible spending account (also referred to as FSA)?

According to FSAFED “A Flexible Spending Account (FSA) is a tax-favored program offered by employers that allows their employees to pay for eligible out-of-pocket health care and dependent care expenses with pre-tax dollars. By using pre-tax dollars to pay for eligible health care and dependent care expenses, an FSA gives you an immediate discount on these expenses that equals the taxes you would otherwise pay on that money... In other words, with an FSA, you can both reduce your taxes and get more for your money by saving from 20% to more than 40% you would normally pay for out-of-pocket health care and dependent care expenses with after-tax (as opposed to taxed) dollars.”
Wondering how this will save you money? Go here for a nifty calculator that shows you how much further pre-tax money goes in an FSA.

Take advantage of discounts on maintenance (daily) medication perks.

Most pharmacies offer discounts on 90 day or more supplies of regular prescriptions. It takes a little research and forethought (meaning, talk to your pharmacy manager before you talk to your doctor about writing a prescription) but a few minutes could save you hundreds of dollars. If your pharmacy doesn’t offer this benefit, consider enrolling in a mail order service through your prescription program, which often has similar benefits.
For example, consider a medication that costs you $30 a month is just $60 for 3 months. Over a year, that could save you $120 – not a bad return on a few minutes of foresight. The return could be even greater if you have several daily medications.

Consider the OTC alternative.

A couple years ago I was treated for a minor ulcer that required prescription heartburn medication. Since I was working in a cubicle farm, a co-worker overheard my griping about the cost of my medication. He had a similar situation occur a few years earlier and had been informed that an OTC alternative had one of the same active ingredients. Score! The same results for 1/3 the cost. (Of course, I checked with my doctor first and you should as well before trying any OTC alternatives).

Be an advocate of your own health.

Be upfront with your doctor about learning to control your prescription costs. I learned this while on an alternative medical insurance program which paid the first $1000 of health care expenses, but the next $3000 was out of pocket. I learned quickly how to “budget” my prescriptions by asking questions about the availability of alternative treatments, prescription samples, and generics.

Go generic.

Generic is not only cheaper when you pay for prescriptions yourself, it is also significantly cheaper when you are part of a subsidized insurance program. Typical prescription programs have stages (also referred to as “tiers” of costs, the lowest being generics and the highest being non-favorable alternatives to treating common conditions.

Look into public programs.

For those who do not have health insurance, or for those whose insurance is lacking, there are favorable alternatives. Look into your local county health department for resources, and go from there. (Unfortunately, the benefits are not standard in every state so detailing a list of benefits is far beyond this short story.)

Learn alternative methods to co-pays.

Wal-Mart started a program almost 2 years ago that allows you to purchase over 300 common prescription drugs – and now some OTC medicines - for just $4. The program has been so successful other retail chains, like Target, have jumped on to compete. Chances are, at least one of these included prescriptions could save you significant cash through the $4 programs.

Don't believe that drugs are the only answer.

The pharmaceutical industry makes a living by creating solutions to problems that we normally weren’t fortunate enough to have a drug to provide the answer to. Although advances in medical science help us to alleviate conditions that there were formally no answer to, some prescriptions seem like answers to conditions that have been dreamed up. (Restless leg syndrome anyone?)

Sometimes, prescriptions are the easy way out. More difficult, but much more worthwhile, is doing something like changing your lifestyle or your eating habits. Your health, and your wallet, will be better for making the tough choice.