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אַרְיֵה |
Routine visit to primary care doc, he prescribes meds and offers to send Rx directly to pharmacy. This doesn't work for me; between GoodRx and Part D Medicare, I might find that it's more cost-effective to use different pharmacies for some of the meds, so the doc's office gives me hard-copy Rx and lets me do my own shopping. The records that I have kept only go back ten years, but it has been all of that time and much longer, that I have sent the Rx form to the local Publix pharmacy via FAX, and the meds have been ready for pick-up next day. Always a smooth transaction, no hitches, no hiccups. Until this week. I arrived at the Publix pharmacy to pick up the order and was informed by the pharmacy clerk that "we do not accept prescriptions that are FAXed by the patient." I told her that I had been using this method for way more than ten years at that pharmacy, and asked why this instance was different. Turns out that the pharmacist at that location had taken it upon herself to make the unilateral decision to change a system that had been working perfectly well for as long as I have been using that Publix pharmacy location, well over ten years. To add insult to injury, they never bothered to let me know that the meds would not be available for pick-up, even though my FAX had my contact information. Better, in their thoughtlessness, to let the customer burn the time and fuel for a wild goose chase. I used the "Contact Us" form on the Publix website to bring this to the attention of Publix corporate management, and request an explanation. I received a prompt response with a case number and a commitment to get a full explanation to me. Third day, still waiting. הרחפת שלי מלאה בצלופחים | ||
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| Member |
First, I am sorry for your inconvenience. It is frustrating to have a system that has worked for a length of time, suddenly be changed. My older son is a pharmacist (currently working for Publix), and in a general sense, depending on the type of medication, prescriptions are only filled when presented in person or emailed / faxed from a medical office. The reason is because of faked prescriptions, especially with opioids, or other meds that can be misused / abused. According to my son, ADHD medication (Ritalin / Adderall) is a "hot" product right now - it is a cheap "high" when mixed with alcohol or other things. However, you are right that the pharmacy should have notified you when you first faxed the prescription in, that faxed prescriptions from customers were no longer acceptable. Good luck with a workable solution. | |||
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| אַרְיֵה |
There were no opioids involved. Just commonly prescribed BP meds -- AmLODIPine, Losartan, and Metoprolol Tartrate. Not a high probability that someone will fake the Rx in order to abuse these particular meds. I really doubt that street value is very high. ETA: I just reread your post, thought about it, and have another question. You mention prescriptions that are presented in person. If a prescription can be faked to be sent by FAX, wouldn't a printed copy, presented in person, look exactly the same? הרחפת שלי מלאה בצלופחים | |||
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Fighting the good fight |
True, but it's much more straightforward to have a pharmacy policy that says "No patient faxed prescriptions" than it is to have one that says "No patient faxed prescriptions, unless it's it's only for BP meds, or gout meds, or nausea meds, or Hantavirus meds, or..." | |||
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| Thank you Very little  |
In the last year, Publix, WalMart, Costco and UHC came to an agreement or disagreement on filling prescriptions in that Publix is no longer a "preferred" pharmacy, for that matter nor is Wal-Mart. This means they only fill scripts for 30 days, the 90 day fill is gone. Now some folks will blame UHC for this driving people to their online pharmacy, however you can go to CVS and get a 90 day fill so they are preferred. JMO but my bet is Publix and Wal-Mart don't want to be preferred, they want you in the store as often as possible, making them 30 day fills increased the amount of trips to the store with a guaranteed once a month trip for all customers. I cancelled all the scripts and had them moved to the online home delivery pharmacy. I get on time instant access to all script information, pending delivery emails and/or texts, notifications in advance of expired scripts and those are sent to the doctors office. Don't know why I didn't go to them earlier with home delivery it's fantastic not having to fill them every 30 days, it seemed like I was at the pharmacy more than once a week as scripts became fillable every 30 days. Amazon will take your scripts and deliver to your home as well, but I'd bet the only place taking faxed in scripts from a customer are mom and pop pharmacies and even they probably are going away from that option due to fraudulent scripts. Just have your doc send it electronically to Publix from now on, it's quick, they get a record of it, and you can follow up on the phone before going... | |||
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| אַרְיֵה |
הרחפת שלי מלאה בצלופחים | |||
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Member |
I wonder if that local pharmacist had the authority to make that policy decision? _________________________________________________________________________ “A man’s treatment of a dog is no indication of the man’s nature, but his treatment of a cat is. It is the crucial test. None but the humane treat a cat well.” -- Mark Twain, 1902 | |||
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| אַרְיֵה |
As I wrote in the OP, I control my costs by using different pharmacies. I check both my Medicare Part D cost, and the cost using GoodRx, and I get the meds from the most cost-effective place. I need a bit of time to do this, not practical to try to do it while I'm still at the Dr.'s office, and even if it were, the admin gal would balk at sending the various prescriptions to different pharmacies. Even if she were willing, I have no doubt that she would fuck it up. You refer to an "online home delivery pharmacy." Please tell me more about that. My Part D Rx insurance is through WellCare, but I am a self-pay customer if GoodRx cost is lower for a particular med. You also mention that 90-day supplies are no longer available. I have never encountered that; the doc gives me 90-day prescriptions with three refills, so a year's supply. We have been doing it that way for as long as my records show, more than ten years. I have never had a 30-day prescription, for anything. הרחפת שלי מלאה בצלופחים | |||
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| Member |
Strange. I was a pharmacy technician at Kroger (hated it) and they accepted prescriptions electronically EXCEPT for controlled meds, which required a hardcopy from the doctor. | |||
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| אַרְיֵה |
I don't know whether she actually has the authority, but she certainly behaves as if she does. Not the first time that I have encountered this sort of behavior. Another run-in that I had with a Publix pharmacist -- When I got hit with Guillain Barré, I was given a prescription for Lyrica. It did not do the job, so my doc told me to discontinue it and prescribed Gabapentin instead. I took the Gabapentin prescription to a Publix pharmacy, where the pharmacist, who thought that she was much smarter than the doctor, refused to fill the Rx because it was "too similar to Lyrica." Major discussion ensued, I told her that we were discontinuing the Lyrica so there was no conflict, but she did not give a flying fuck. That was on a Friday afternoon, the doctor's office had closed for the weekend so I was not able to get him to intervene. Store manager got involved, he agreed with me but said he did not have the authority to overrule the pharmacist and could not force her to do her job and fill the prescription. I left, went to the pharmacy at Winn-Dixie, told the pharmacist what had happened at Publix. He stated that she (Publix pharmacist) had clearly overstepped her authority, he called her, told her to FAX the Rx to him immediately, told me to do my grocery shopping if I needed anything while he filled the prescription, and had everything taken care of within ten minutes. הרחפת שלי מלאה בצלופחים | |||
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| Member |
It’s not legal for a pharmacy to fill a prescription faxed in from a patient. They probably didn’t catch it in the past because as you said no one is going to forge a blood pressure med | |||
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| אַרְיֵה |
Can you cite the source for this? הרחפת שלי מלאה בצלופחים | |||
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| Member |
I’m a pharmacist licensed in 3 states although Florida is not one of them. Google “ can a patient fax a prescription to a pharmacy “ and it’ll show the law. | |||
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| Thank you Very little |
The 90 day issue is one with Publix, Wal-Mart, Costco and others and UHC (United HealthCare), in contracting with the carrier, Publix and Wal-Mart have not agreed to be a preferred pharmacy, for whatever reasons, however in doing so UHC will only pay for a 30 fill at a time. With all the medical issues I had last year and the countless number of prescriptions that made multiple trips to the Pharmacy necessary since none of them come up at the same time. CVS contracted as did others and Evernorth Express Scripts. Your Wellcare has a home 90 day fill service built in, it might actually save you some money or at least aggravation no longer having to go to different pharmacies, call around, it's on their web page re Pharmacy. Link WellCare Pharmacy
It is from Google, but it quotes the statue.... In Florida, patients cannot directly fax a paper prescription to a pharmacy themselves. Because a prescription must originate from a licensed prescriber, the fax must come directly from your doctor's office or medical facility. If you have a physical paper prescription, you must bring the hard copy in person. Under state and federal law, handling prescriptions via fax requires adherence to specific guidelines: Doctor's Responsibility: The prescribing provider or their authorized medical staff must be the ones to transmit the prescription via fax. Controlled Substances: There are strict limits on faxing medications like opioids and stimulants (Schedule II through V controlled substances). Many pharmacies enforce strict policies requiring the physical paper copy for controlled substances to prevent manipulation or for verification. Electronic Prescribing Mandates: The Florida Board of Pharmacy (.gov) and Florida Statutes Section 456.42 legally require practitioners to transmit prescriptions electronically, with faxing only permitted under certain exemptions. Statutory Rules: If a pharmacy receives a facsimile of a prescription directly, they are legally required under Florida Statutes Section 465.035 to verify it with the practitioner and keep the physical prescription on file at the time of deliveryThis message has been edited. Last edited by: HRK, | |||
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Member |
Paper script has to be printed on special paper that when copied or faxed will transmit with VOID across the script. Paper script also has to have an ink that can be "rubbed out" by friction. Paper script does not allow 2 factor identification that electronic transmission contains. Think of a paper script as a blank check that can be filled in for any drug, any quantity, etc. Not many prescribers are using paper due to the DEA and requirements for controlled substances. Feds also impose a penalty on prescribers that still use paper charts. | |||
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| Member |
I get my insulin from the VA, but the syringes I prefer having stuck myself 5 times a day for nearly 30 years are those with the extra short needle. The VA does not have those at this time, so I buy my syringes at Publix. A year or so a new to me Publix pharmacist refused to sell me syringes unless I purchased my insulin from Publix, though I had a copy of my prescriptions from the VA with me. She said it was "her" policy and the store manager told me he did not have the authority to overrule her. I called Publix's main headquarters and was assured I certainly could buy syringes without buying insulin and asked to return to the store where they assured me syringes would be waiting for my pickup without charge. I did and the pharmacist was so apologetic and almost, IMO, groveling. She is still there and I've had no more trouble obtaining syringes since. Bob | |||
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| אַרְיֵה |
What is her name, please? Email address is in my profile, if you don't want to publish it here. הרחפת שלי מלאה בצלופחים | |||
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| That rug really tied the room together.  |
I love Publix pharmacy. They are the best retail pharmacy in the state of Florida that I have ever had to deal with. My insurance made it a headache and made CVS the preferred pharmacy provider. I HATE CVS. Unfortunately, I have moved about 20 prescriptions to Express Scripts (online pharmacy) per my insurances pushing me to save money on their end. I hate having to deal with CVS and even hate Express Scripts more, but I will admit when it works and the prescription just shows up at my door that is pretty convenient. Before, I was at the Publix or CVS pharmacy about 3-4 times per week. Now everything just shows up when its due, and in 90 days supplies. I had to fight Publix for 90 day supplies. They were always reluctant to fill a 90 day supply. ______________________________________________________ Often times a very small man can cast a very large shadow | |||
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| אַרְיֵה |
Electrons are fuel.  הרחפת שלי מלאה בצלופחים | |||
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