Thursday, May 29, 2008

2 * 30 = Frustration

Why is it that people can't think for themselves? Or take action proactively? Maybe I just don't suffer fools gladly.

I needed to refill a prescription. I was burned the last time when I refilled this prescription in that they only gave me 30 pills. The prescription was for me to take it 2 times per day which when I studied math would come out to 60 pills for a one month prescription. They blamed it that time on the insurance company, e.g. "the insurance company will only pay for 30 pills at a time" said the idiot behind the counter. Much arguing ensued about 'a one month supply' etc., hassle in coming back twice a month, HEY IT'S NOT SPEED OR BARBITUATES...IT'S BLOOD PRESSURE MEDICINE!!!.

Two weeks later (yesterday) I needed to refill the prescription again. I had called our insurance company and they said that they will gladly pay for 62 pills per refill. Armed with this information, we stopped at W*lgr@@n's again; the drive-thru, of course, because I was too lazy to get my fat ass out of the car and walk the 200 steps to and from the pharmacy.

The discussion went thusly:

Me: I need to pick up a prescription for me.
Idiot Behind the Glass (IBG): Okay.

(a few minutes later)

IBG: Okay that will be $5.00
Me: (handing over credit card): Okay. Can you check the quantity please?
IBG: There are 30 pills.
Me: There should be 60. Two times 30 is 60.
IBG: The quantity says 30.
Me: Again, 2 times 30 is 60. The insurance company says they will pay for 62 pills per month. The doctor says to take it twice a day. How can I take it twice a day if you only give me enough for once a day? May I speak with your supervisor?
Pharmacist IBG: The quantity says 30.
Me: The doctor says twice a day. Can't you multiply 2 times 30?
PIBG: I can only give the quantity that it says to give.
Me: Can't you think for yourself? Couldn't someone call the doctor to clarify the discrepancy? Why is this so hard?
PIBG: Get your doctor to re-fax the prescription.
Me: Give me my credit card back and credit the $5.00 back to my account. I am not paying for half a prescription.

Now we have to go back again.

I am surrounded by idiots, fools and incompetents.

3 comments:

~ Elly ~ said...

well if they ever ask why you have high blood pressure....

Notes and letters to myself.... said...

You really are going to have to get your doctor to change the quantity of the number of pills. I just went through this with Kaiser, they are all idiots.

Just Me said...

I can't believe how many ways pharmacies screw up. Today I caught the 3rd time that I've been given a month's worth of the wrong dose or wrong med. Today it was a totally different med than I take. Since I have multiple and severe drug allergies I have to be carefully monitored with anything new and if I hadn't noticed this could have been bad.

I've been through the exact same discussion about 2 pills/day being 60, and that if I filled a script for 1 pill/day 3 weeks ago and my doctor immediately afterward wrote a script for me to increase to 2x/day then I need MORE medicine sooner. Unfortunately this was with ativan and they basically treated me like a drug addict until my insurance beat them up for me.