My Co-Pay Is WHAT???

I finally filled the prescriptions the doctor had written for me on my last visit & procedure before we left Los Angeles. I decided to wait until we got to Virginia to fill them as I knew there was a CVS around the corner from our hotel that's open 24/7, and if I did it in California I wasn't sure if the nearest pharmacy would have enough on hand, or if they'd make me wait. Patience is not my long suit.

I dropped off the prescriptions on Tuesday and decided to give them time to fill them. We were busy all day Wednesday with the dog stuff, so I went back yesterday to pick them up. They put one part of the prescription on the counter, but were scurrying around to find the other. While waiting, I took a look at the blue shaded area where it tells me what I owe, and I almost fell over in shock. My co-pay was $587. Five Hundred Eighty Seven Dollars??? What the ...???? I told the lady that there must be some kind of mistake, that I spoke with my insurance as to why I need it, and I know this prescription is covered. I told them that I was not going to pay for it and I needed to call my insurance again to straighten this out.

Outside of the pharmacy, with my heart pounding, I quickly dialed the pharmacy number on the back of my insurance card. I explained to the technician what had happened and she researched the drug. Yes, it is covered through the mail order program with a $35 co-pay for a 90-day supply. However, as I'm trying to fill it in a retail pharmacy, my cost is 25% of the prescription. Whoa... a serious difference in price. Why would I even consider filling it in the pharmacy if I could get it for a mere fraction of the price.

I stayed on the phone with her through the endless transferring process and began the "paperwork" to order this prescription through the mail. I gave all of the pertinent information - name, date of birth, address, credit card number to charge my prescriptions once they're sent. Everything went smoothly, until they told me that I needed to send in my prescription and it would take 5 - 7 business days to process the prescription, and I would receive it within 4-6 weeks. My heart sank yet again.

For once I was extremely calm, yet I'm sure the woman could hear the trepidation in my voice. I was seriously on the verge of tears. While I don't need this prescription immediately, I would really LIKE it sooner rather than later. And let's be honest, from experience, I know that if I don't follow up on things like this, they don't always get done correctly, or in a timely manner. Am I really going to have time this once I get to India next week?

To speed this story along... The doctor's office re-called in the prescription to the mail order specialty pharmacy. And after hearing my story (to which I completely admitted it was all my fault), the representative at Medco wanted so badly to help me out, that he personally expedited the prescription, and circumvented the entire process. Within 3 hours called me back to tell me that everything has been approved and they would FedEx the 90-day supply to my hotel so I would have it no later than noon the next day (today). All for the low, low price of my $35 co-pay. Oh yeah, shipping is free! There were no additional charges for the overnight FedEx.

True to his word, at 9:30 am this morning, the front desk at the hotel called me to let me know I had received a box. A rather LARGE box. Filled with my 90-day prescription that is WAY too big and bulky to fit in the remaining space we have available. So off to Target we will go to buy another suitcase (we needed one anyway to fit the "stuff" we bought here in Virginia). And thank you notes. Because I need to let this amazing customer service representative understand my appreciation.