Sometimes My Prescriptions Are Cheaper With GoodRx Than My Health Insurance. How Does This Work?

Welcome to Ask Clark, a column designed to answer your financial questions, by money expert Clark Howard.

Are Prescription Prices on GoodRx Cheaper Than With Insurance?

Dave from Tennessee asks: "I've had situations where prescriptions have been cheaper via GoodRx than they have been with insurance. I don't understand how the economics of this works. Are both GoodRx and the insurance company getting rebates from the pharmacy that fills the prescription?"

Clark Explains Prescription Prices Through GoodRx vs. Insurance

Clark says: For generic prescription drugs, it's typical these days to find better deals than what your health insurance policy offers.

Two places you may be able to find cheaper prescription prices:

  1. Direct store price
  2. GoodRx or one of its competitors

"The insurers are taking advantage of people thinking that using the drug benefit with your insurance plan for generics will absolutely be cheaper than other ways of buying prescription drugs. Actually, it is now very much the opposite," Clark says.

Because of this, Clark says any time he needs to fill a prescription, he compares the GoodRx price to what it would be otherwise.

If you're interested in learning more ways to save on prescriptions, Clark has two quick tips for you:

Sam’s Club: “If you are a Sam’s Club member and have a Plus membership, they offer fantastic deals with a lot of generics potentially being free for you.”

Costco: “If you look on GoodRx, the cheapest place to fill a prescription drug consistently is Costco Wholesale. And Costco has to let you fill a prescription even if you’re not a member,” Clark says.

Want to learn more about GoodRx? Here's how it can save you money on your medications.

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More Prescription Resources From Clark.com:

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