How dare they? A pharmacy decides to give away free antibiotics. People around the world that work for pharmaceutical companies have kids that need to eat too! There is profit to be had here! Next we’ll be giving free HIV meds to people in Africa. WTF people?
Seriously, where are our priorities?
We can only hope that, with this move, the violent gangs of amoxicillin junkies running rampant throughout the southeastern part of the country will take this opportunity to give up mugging people in order to feed their habits.
Is this a bad idea what with antibiotic resistance and all?
They will stop at nothing to appease their antibiotic needs. Godless, biotic heathens! Louis Pasteur is molding in his grave.
The article says they will be provided free to anyone with a prescription for them, so as long as doctors aren’t prescribing them where they are not required, it’s not any worse than it was when people had to pay.
It’s just PR. All the antibotics listed, except for Cipro, are dirt cheap.
People who visit doctors, though, are specifically going to request one of these 7, even if it’s not the one they need. All of the doctors around here have a copy of Wal-Mart’s $4 list of drugs, and the patients will ask to be prescribed those drugs all the time. Sometimes a doctor will prescribe something else, and we have to call to get an authorization to switch it, because the customer won’t pay 16 dollars for something, it HAS to be on the 4 dollar list. (I realize that some people literally can’t afford the extra 12 dollars for a necessary med, but this happens more often than can be explained by poverty.)
–chaoticbear, ex WM pharmacy employee
There’s a couple of big pharmacies around here that do that now. It’s not a big savings, as others have pointed out those drugs are usually cheap anyway, but if you have kids that go on antibiotics a couple times a year each it adds up. With all the medical co-pays and charges for everything else, it’s nice to have something just be free.
With little ones and their constant ear infections, it will be nice to have these more common antibiotics available for free.
And since you’re in Publix anyway, I’m sure it will be very convenient to pick up a gallon of milk and some bread while you’re waiting…
I think it’s an excellent PR move. I’m waiting for Wal-Mart and Target to follow.
Even Cipro is available as a (relatively) inexpensive generic. Back when I did Ostrich medicine, I had a bird I did surgery on and then had on a gram of cipro twice a day. It was before generics, and the client thought the pharmacist was pulling his leg.