Can the Pharmacy refuse to give you back your prescription w/o filling it?

In My Humble Opinion (IMHO)
#1

If I had made this post last night, it would have been in the Pit, but I have calmed down enough now.

I added Mr. Jeeves to my insurance this fall, its grad student insurance so it’s not great, but the policy specifically says that there is prescription coverage, up to $1,500 per year. Well, he went to the doctor for the first time on Friday, since his main prescription that keeps him from vomiting all the time (Nexium) had about 2 weeks left. He was given a new prescription, so far, so good. Here is where it gets angry making.

He took the prescription to CVS to have it filled. They ran his insurance card and said that he did not have prescription drug coverage, and that he would have to pay $300 for the pills. When he said that wasn’t correct, and asked for the prescription back so that he could take it to the on-campus pharmacy, they refused to give the prescription back.

They told him that once it was entered into their system, whatever the fresh hell that means, then they won’t give the prescription back, even if you don’t get the pills.

Is this legal? This seems wrong. It’s not like he is trying to double dip, and its not like it is a painkiller. There is no recreational use for Nexium. Now, instead of going to the on-campus pharmacy and having them straighten out the insurance, he has to go back to the doctor to get a new prescription first. My fear is that the doctor is going to say “No, what happened to the one I just wrote for you?”

Advice, comments? I really want to go to CVS and throw a fucking fit, but I don’t think that will help.

#2

in the interest of making the least trouble possible* (and keeping him from throwing up indiscriminately), why dont you ask the MD for a new script, and if he gives you any issue, which he probably won’t, ask him to speak to the pharmacist. Either they’ll confirm their policy, whch gets you a fresh script, or they’ll say “No, of course he can have it back,” which gets you an old script.

Then you can pitch a hissy-fit in CVS.
*first time evah PRR has taken this tack!!

#3

I think it’s really likely that you can resolve this by having the doctor call in a prescription to the campus pharmacy. I have no idea what CVS is up to, but doctors’ offices are IME pretty flexible about calling in prescriptions for non-controversial medications.

#4

Usually, you can just have the new pharmacy call the old one and have them transfer the script over. At least, that’s how it worked when I was moving back and forth between school and home. Call the campus pharmacy and see if they can take care of this with one phone call.

Also, you have to read student insurance policies really carefully–mine had full prescription coverage at commercial pharmacies, but only if they were in a different town than my school. So I could get my meds for a $10 co-pay at the Walmart in my hometown, but at school I had to either go to the campus pharmacy or else pay full price and submit the receipt for reimbursement. I learned this when I went to pick up a script at the Walmart near my apartment and the nice lady said, “That’ll be $180, please.” I nearly had a stroke.

#5

Your advice misses the question. “Can a pharmacist refuse to give you back you Rx”.

If I submitted a prescription and couldn’t get it becaus of insurance not covering it, I would as most would ask for it back.

If this is legal or acceptable in the pharmacy world, then I’d be shocked.

Doctors a busy and if what happened is acceptable and occurs, it’s not always easy to just get another script that day or possibly week. If it’s a Friday night, your out of luck.

I find that pharmacists seem to make up things quite a bit with reasons that they also make up, and sadly, it’s fine in the field of pharmacy.

The fact that we can’t even answer this persons question about not your script back being legal shows the black box of Phamacy.

#6

10 yo thread. I hope he has his Nexium being it’s OTC now.