Fw: Costco - read the entire article (especially the end)

May 2, 2011

I got this from my cousin the other day and thought I'd pass it on to you all! It will just go to show you what a bunch of crooks big pharma is!

Begin forwarded message:

Can this really be true?:

Costco - read the entire article (especially the end)

This attached article is VERY INTERESTING..... please read until the very end. Please pass this article to all your family and friends. Costco--Read this whole article-especially the endLet's hear it for Costco!! (This is just mind-boggling!) Make sure you read all the way past the list of the drugs. The woman that signed below is a Budget Analyst out of federalWashington , DCoffices.Did you ever wonder how much it costs a drug company for the active ingredient in prescription medications? Some people think it must cost a lot, since many drugs sell for more than $2.00

per tablet. We did a search of offshore chemical synthesizers that supply the active ingredients found in drugs approved by the FDA. As we have revealed in past issues of Life Extension, a significant percentage of drugs sold in theUnited Statescontain active ingredients made in other countries. In our independent investigation of how much profit drug companies really make, we obtained the actual price of active ingredients used in some of the most popular drugs sold inAmericaThe data below speaks for itself.Celebrex:100 mgConsumer price (100 tablets): $130.27Cost of general active ingredients: $ 0.60Percent markup: 21,712%Claritin:1 0 mgConsumer Price (100 tablets): $215.17Cost of general active ingredients: $0.71Percent markup: 30,306%Keflex:250 mgConsumer Price (100 tablets): $157.39Cost of general active ingredients: $1.88Percent markup: 8,372%Lipitor:20 mgConsumer Price (100 tablets): $272.37Cost of general active ingredients: $5.80Percent markup: 4,696%Norvasc:10 mg Cost of general active ingredients: $0.14Percent markup: 134,493%Paxil:20 mgConsumer price (100 tablets): $220.27Cost of general active ingredients: $7.60Percent markup: 2,898%Prevacid:30 mgConsumer price (100 tablets): $44.77Cost of general active ingredients: $1.01Percent markup: 34,136%Prilosec: 20 mgConsumer price (100 tablets): $360.97Cost of general active ingredients $0.52Percent markup: 69,417%Prozac:20 mgConsumer price (100 tablets) : $247.47Cost of general active ingredients: $0.11Percent markup: 224,973%Tenormin:50 mgConsumer price (100 tablets): $104.47Cost of general active ingredients: $0.13Percent markup:

80,362%Vasotec:10 mgConsumer price (100 tablets): $102.37Cost of general active ingredients: $0.20Percent markup: 51,185%Xanax:1 mgConsumer price (100 tablets) : $136.79Cost of general active ingredients: $0.024Percent markup: 569,958%Zestril:20 mgConsumer price (100 tablets) $89.89Cost

of general active ingredients $3.20Percent markup: 2,809Zithromax:600 mgConsumer price (100 tablets): $1,482.19Cost of general active ingredients: $18.78Percent markup: 7,892%Zocor: /B40 mgConsumer price (100 tablets): $350.27Cost of general active ingredients: $8.63Percent markup: 4,059%Zoloft:50

mgConsumer price: $206.87Cost of general active ingredients: $1.75Percent markup: 11,821%Since the cost of prescription drugs is so outrageous, I thought everyone should know about this. Please read the following and pass it on. It pays to shop around. This helps to solve the mystery as to why they can afford to put a Walgreen's on every corner. On Monday night, Steve , an investigative reporter for Channel 7 News in Detroit , did a story on generic drug price gouging by pharmacies. He found in his investigation, that some of these generic drugs were marked up as much as 3,000% or more. Yes, that's not a typo.....three thousand percent! So often, we blame the

drug companies for the high cost of drugs, and usually rightfully so. But in this case, the fault clearly lies with the pharmacies themselves. For example, if you had to buy a prescription drug, and bought the name brand, you might pay $100 for 100 pills. The pharmacist might tell you that if you get the generic equivalent, they would only cost $80, making you think you are 'saving' $20. What the pharmacist is not telling you is that those 100 generic pills may have only cost him $10!At the end of the report, one of the anchors asked Mr. whether or not there were any pharmacies that did not adhere to this practice, and he said that Costco consistently charged little over their cost for the generic drugs..I went to the Costco

site, where you can look up any drug, and get its online price. It says that the in-store prices are consistent with the online prices. I was appalled. Just to give you one example from my own experience, I had to use the drug, Compazine, which helps prevent nausea in chemo patients.I used the generic equivalent, which cost $54.99 for 60 pills at CVS. I checked the price at Costco, and I could have bought 100 pills for $19.89. For 145 of my pain pills, I paid $72.57. I could have got 150 at Costco for $28.08.I would like to mention, that although Costco is a 'membership' type store, you do NOT have to be a member to buy prescriptions there, as it is a federally regulated substance. You just tell them at the door that you wish

to use the pharmacy, and they will let you in. (this is true)I went there this past Thursday and asked them. I am asking each of you to please help me by copying this letter, and passing it into your own e-mail, and send it to everyone you know with an e-mail address.

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May 2, 2011