A few days ago, I had a sore throat and the doctor recommended taking some roxithromycin.
Last night, I took my medical insurance card to a chain pharmacy here and bought a box of domestic roxithromycin tablets at a price of 18 yuan. On a whim this morning, I wanted to see how much it sold online.
It was a good mood, but when I saw the price, it was really a thunderstorm. The free shipping price of the same specification and dose on the online Tmall pharmacy is basically 3-4 yuan. The lowest of the same specification is 2.88 yuan.
I couldn't help but be dumbfounded. How can it be so much worse? The price of this brick-and-mortar pharmacy is almost six times that of an online pharmacy!
I think back to last night at the pharmacy, the staff were warm and professional, but I never expected them to sell drugs at such a high price. I'm not biased against brick-and-mortar pharmacies, but the price gap is really hard to accept. I originally thought that the health insurance card would save me some expenses, but now it seems that I have been cut leeks.
When I go to work, I am in front of the computer, and I have mixed feelings. On the one hand, I'm glad I checked the price online on a whim today, otherwise I might still be in the dark with this high-priced drug. On the other hand, I felt angry and disappointed at the high prices of physical pharmacies, and disappointed that I did not know the market prices in advance.
What exactly causes the price difference?
Is it the brick-and-mortar pharmacy that costs more?
Or are they deliberately inflating prices for higher profits?
After searching the Internet, I found that there are indeed regional differences and channel differences in drug prices, but such a huge price gap still shocked me.
It's better to stock up on the Internet for more common medicines. Even if it is thrown away after expiration, it is more comfortable than being cut by the pharmacy when using it.