The Dallas Morning News
July 31, 2004, Saturday
McKinney, Texas, drugstore offers prescriptions at no profit for needy
By Paul Meyer
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McKINNEY, Texas — As pill prices rise, politicians wrangle and some customers search north of the border for help, one of Texas’ oldest drugstores is offering a novel remedy grounded in old-fashioned values.
Last month, Smith Drug Co. began selling prescriptions at no profit for underinsured and uninsured customers a move some doctors and industry observers call unprecedented in their experience.
“It’s really not fair to the customers to take advantage of them,” said Kaylei Mosier, owner of the 145-year-old store in McKinney’s historic downtown.
Take the drug ciprofloxacin, a generic medication commonly prescribed to treat infections. For 20 500-milligram pills, customers spend $ 84.59 at a Walgreens.com. CanadaPharmacy.com charges $ 36 for the same amount, based on a 100-pill order.
At Smith Drug, it costs $ 10.22, including a $ 7 charge for labor and overhead, according to a letter sent to doctors this month.
“Generic drugs are the ones that are marked up the most, have the greatest variation [in cost] and make the pharmacies the most money,” said Devon M. Herrick, research manager for the National Center for Policy Analysis.
Both the Texas Pharmacy Association and American Pharmacists Association said Friday that they haven’t heard of another pharmacy with a similar program.
“This is the first experience I’ve heard of somebody willing to sell at cost,” said David Gonzales, director of public affairs for the Texas Pharmacy Association.
“You have other pharmacies that would question the wisdom of doing that from a profit standpoint, but that would be a business question.”
Carla Chandler, 42, has insurance that covers three of her five medications. For one of the others, she called every pharmacy in the area and says she was quoted about $ 240 at one store. At Smith, the bill was $ 16.68. Drug delivery was free.
“My mouth dropped open. I said, ‘Excuse me, that can’t be right,’ ” Ms. Chandler said when she learned the cost of her medication at Smith Drug.
“If it wasn’t for them, it would mean we would have to go without paying one of our major bills.”
The same applies to Marjorie J. Washington, 76, who became uninsured after moving here from Missouri.
Ms. Washington, with six prescriptions, said prices she pays at Smith Drug are less than her co-payments under her old insurance.
“I wouldn’t have any money if it wasn’t for them,” she said. “I couldn’t do anything but eat and buy drugs.”
McKinney urologist Jerry Frankel, a member of Physicians for a National Health Program, said he tries to send all his patients, insured or not, to the pharmacy after learning of the new policy.
“You can’t make a living just taking care of uninsured people,” he said.
“I’m trying to direct people with open minds and good insurance to go there as well.”