Even when you have a prescription card that pays for your medicines, you may find that they don't pay very well for allergy medicines. Since Claritin went over the counter, many insurance companies raised the copay for allergy medicines, likely because they hoped that more patients would choose to buy OTC medicines on their own.
Here are some tips that might save you some money on your child's allergy medicines:
Avoid Allergy Triggers
One way to avoid spending a lot of money on allergy medicines is to simply avoid the things that trigger your child's allergy symptoms so that he doesn't even need to take any medicine in the first place. These triggers can include things in the house, such as dust mites, pet dander, and mold, or pollens and other things outside.If you don't know what triggers your child's allergies, an allergy test might be a good investment to help you find out.
OTC Medicines
After Claritin went over-the-counter, many people who hoped to save a lot of money were soon in for a shock. While they no longer needed a visit to the doctor or a prescription, OTC allergy medicines were not much cheaper than a copay. They have dropped in price recently though, and there are many generic versions of loratadine, like Alavert, that are even less expensive. These factors can make loratadine cheaper than prescription allergy medicines and may be a good alternative for many kids with allergies.Zyrtec is now over-the-counter too, although competition isn't what has made OTC allergy medicines cheaper than prescription medications. many insurance companies either no longer cover prescription allergy medicines or have raised their copays - which may make it cheaper to go with an OTC medicine.
Preferred Allergy Medicines
If your child needs a prescription allergy medicine to help control and prevent his allergy symptoms, then you may be able to save money by choosing a medication that is on your insurance plan's list of preferred medicines. Or if the medicine your child is taking isn't covered, ask your pediatrician to try and get it approved or get a pre-authorization so that it will be covered.You might also check with your insurance to see if you can save money by using mail order to get a three-month supply of your child's allergy medicines. Even if your insurance company doesn't offer extra savings for a three-month supply of medicine, you may find these prescriptions cheaper at a reputable online pharmacy, like drugstore.com.
Coupons for Allergy Medicines
With all of the advertising that is directed at doctors and consumers for allergy medicines, it should be no surprise that this is a competitive market. That can be helpful, as most of the drug companies provide incentives to help you save money on your prescriptions and many provide them online, including rebates and coupons for:- Alavert
- Allegra D Coupon
- Clarinex Coupon
- Claritin
- Zyrtec Coupon
- Flonase
- Nasonex
- Omnaris Rebate Offer
- Patanase Rebate Offer
Free Samples
And don't forget the easiest way to save money on your allergy medicines -- just ask your pediatrician for some free samples. Your pediatrician likely has a sample closet full of allergy medicines and getting some samples of a few different allergy medicines can make it easy to figure out which works best for your child before you actually spend money on a prescription.
