If you’re attuned to the world of business, Amazon has become the top dogs with pretty much everything related to consumer products. What’s not necessarily as common is knowing that Amazon is moving into the pharmacy business too, and that may be especially timely for a lot of Americans struggling to afford expensive Rx medications. They’ve proven they have the logistical means to get consumers the best price on products, but does that apply to meds too? Is Amazon cheaper than an online Canadian pharmacy?
It’s a fair question, because a Canadian pharmacy online store has been a go-to option for Americans for years now when prescriptions are too expensive to fill at their local pharmacy. In Canada it’s possible to dispense drugs at lower prices because Health Canada – the Canadian equivalent of the US FDA – regulates the prices for prescription drugs. Some may still be expensive, but not as expensive as they’d be in the USA with the way the pharma industry there is geared to be unregulated and entirely for-profit.
This creates a scenario that is especially difficult for some people, and a good example is diabetics who have no choice but to buy their insulin and take it regularly. If you need any indicator that the kind of access to less expensive medications Amazon may provide is needed, look no further than the insulin caravans of diabetics travelling to Canada in large groups to buy more affordable insulin.
Is Amazon pharmacy cheaper than an online Canadian pharmacy? Let’s dig into to that to see where you can save the most money when ordering drugs from Canada, and if Amazon takes the cake as the cheapest way to get a prescription filled.
All Rx medications are categorized into classes, and some classes feature medications that are so extremely expensive that it will be impossible for new online pharmacy providers like Amazon to offer them at prices that are less than what you’d pay for drugs in Canada. A good example of this would be the TNF alfa inhibitor class of drugs, which includes among other super expensive meds the one that is top of the list for expensive popular medications – Humira.
It’s used to treat Crohn’s disease and it’s a good example of how you may be able to get some drugs for less from Amazon, but ones like this one will still have people looking to order medication online from Canada. There will be other medications that won’t be included in a class of drugs that are known to be expensive but are still going to cost less from Canada than ordered from Amazon. ED meds are a good example because of their popularity.
Is Amazon pharmacy cheaper than an online Canadian Pharmacy? Not so when we’re talking about Viagra and Cialis either. Amazon pharmacy will likely make either of them available for considerably less than the roughly $50 per-pill price that Americans will be paying for them at most pharmacies. If you need any convincing about the advantages of ordering ED meds from Canada you’ll be convinced when you learn that Canadian online pharmacies can get you these meds for about 30 to 40 dollars less per pill depending on the dosage strength.
An Amazon pharmacy is still going to have dispensing fees in the same way a brick and mortar pharmacy will, so when adding that amount on to the price of your prescription is going to be factor in this equation too. There is actually a lot that goes into the cost of your prescription in the USA, and – long story short – much less that goes into it in Canada. Is Amazon pharmacy cheaper than an online Canadian pharmacy? With the assumption that Amazon pharmacy in Seattle, it’s unlikely they will be able to match the prices offered by Canadian pharmacies. At least not for most medications.
Certain drugs that are prescribed by the thousands each week in the USA illustrates that the manufacturers will produce them in much larger quantities. This will be reflected in lower prices at the pharmacy, and it’s with these Rx products that Amazon will likely be able to offer the way lower prices people are looking for. Antidepressant medications are a good example of this.
Just because Amazon is the Internet Giant, they can still add the same mark ups on Rx meds that any other pharmacy does. 10% is a fairly standard markup amount in the States, and even if Amazon comes in under that by a percentage or two they are still going to have higher prices on drugs than what you would have when ordering drugs online from Canada and taking advantage of online pharmacies in Canada like ours.