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Comparative Study
. 2009 Apr;44(2 Pt 1):606-17.
doi: 10.1111/j.1475-6773.2008.00917.x. Epub 2008 Nov 4.

Variation in drug prices at pharmacies: are prices higher in poorer areas?

Walid F Gellad  1 , Niteesh K Choudhry, Mark W Friedberg, M Alan Brookhart, Jennifer S Haas, William H Shrank
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Variation in drug prices at pharmacies: are prices higher in poorer areas?

Walid F Gellad et al. Health Serv Res. 2009 Apr.

Abstract

Objective: To determine whether retail prices for prescription drugs are higher in poorer areas.

Data sources: The MyFloridarx.com website, which provides retail prescription prices at Florida pharmacies, and median ZIP code income from the 2000 Census.

Study design: We compared mean pharmacy prices for each of the four study drugs across ZIP code income groups. Pharmacies were classified as either chain pharmacies or independent pharmacies.

Data collection: Prices were downloaded in November 2006.

Principal findings: Across the four study drugs, mean prices were highest in the poorest ZIP codes: 9 percent above the statewide average. Independent pharmacies in the poorest ZIP codes charged the highest mean prices.

Conclusions: Retail prescription prices appear to be higher in poorer ZIP codes of Florida.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Price of Clopidogrel (Plavix) at Independent (Top) and Chain (Bottom) Pharmacies in Florida
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