# Why is "Plan B" so expensive? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 4, 2013, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020 "2013-01-04T01:13:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Atakapa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a8b319/32.png) [@Atakapa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atakapa)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/1 "2013-01-04T01:13:53Z")
It’s my understanding that the “morning after” pill is merely a very high dosage of the active ingredients in regular hormonal birth control pills. But after a condom broke yesterday, I ended up spending an entire day searching seven pharmacies in two cities for a box of Plan B. The only pharmacy I could find that carried it charged me $70 for a dose after questioning. Why does it cost significantly more than a handful of regular BC pills would? ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/2 "2013-01-04T02:31:02Z")
I’m thinking it’s gotta be partially supply and demand. Did the high price stop you from buying it? ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/3 "2013-01-04T02:52:43Z")
No idea. The price seems to vary widely - perhaps because of subsidies available in some areas but not others. When I brought up the $70 price point recently, other posters said it was only $20-$30 near them. ---
**Author:** ![talamant3z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e19b73/32.png) [@talamant3z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/talamant3z)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/4 "2013-01-04T02:57:14Z")
35 here in texas the most anti contraceptive state. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/5 "2013-01-04T03:00:01Z")
It doesn’t sound very expensive to me given the alternatives. Much of the cost is associated with the cost of the pharmacist prescribing to you. They are fairly highly paid and educated professionals who still can’t prescribe most drugs other than for emergency situations and you were one of those. They have to have liability and the associated insurance for any mistakes they make in those situations just like a medical doctor would. How much would it cost to call your primary care doctor in for an emergency appointment and then have the pharmacy fill the prescription? It is the same thing except much cheaper to you. You are correct that the raw ingredients to make a morning after pill don’t cost much but there are a whole lot of other associated expenses in our over regulated medical system in the U.S. Some of it is they charge you that just because they can. ---
**Author:** ![Sevencl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sevencl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sevencl)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/6 "2013-01-04T03:00:33Z")
> [@Atakapa](#): > > It’s my understanding that the “morning after” pill is merely a very high dosage of the active ingredients in regular hormonal birth control pills. But after a condom broke yesterday, I ended up spending an entire day searching seven pharmacies in two cities for a box of Plan B. The only pharmacy I could find that carried it charged me $70 for a dose after questioning. What kind of questioning? I wonder if you’d have gotten subsidised if you’d answered another way. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/7 "2013-01-04T03:07:28Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > It doesn’t sound very expensive to me given the alternatives. Much of the cost is associated with the cost of the pharmacist prescribing to you. They are fairly highly paid and educated professionals who still can’t prescribe most drugs other than for emergency situations and you were one of those. They have to have liability and the associated insurance for any mistakes they make in those situations just like a medical doctor would. How much would it cost to call your primary care doctor in for an emergency appointment and then have the pharmacy fill the prescription? It is the same thing except much cheaper to you. > > You are correct that the raw ingredients to make a morning after pill don’t cost much but there are a whole lot of other associated expenses in our over regulated medical system in the U.S. Some of it is they charge you that just because they can. Plan B is OTC for women 17 and over. The pharmacist doesn’t have prescribing authority. It holds no more administrative costs than aspirin. Less then cold medicine. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/8 "2013-01-04T03:17:04Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Plan B is OTC for women 17 and over. The pharmacist doesn’t have prescribing authority. It holds no more administrative costs than aspirin. Less then cold medicine. Consider me educated. I did not know that. I guess I was stuck back in the 90’s when some states did require pharmacist approval. That deepens question however. If it is truly OTC like aspirin, there should be a competitive market for it. I’m generally curious now because I have never seen such product on the shelf at my local pharmacy but I have never looked for it either. Is it available OTC in all states and can you just get it like you would cold medicine or do you have to ask for it behind the counter? ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/9 "2013-01-04T03:19:42Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > If it is truly OTC like aspirin, there should be a competitive market for it. Unless it’s patented, in which case they’ve got a protected monopoly. Anyone know if that’s the case? ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/10 "2013-01-04T03:22:48Z")
It’s generally stocked behind the counter, because it is prescription only for under 17, so they have to check ID. But there’s no log like for (some) cold medicines or anything. There is at least one generic available. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/11 "2013-01-04T04:25:52Z")
> [@Atakapa](#): > > It’s my understanding that the “morning after” pill is merely a very high dosage of the active ingredients in regular hormonal birth control pills. But after a condom broke yesterday, I ended up spending an entire day searching seven pharmacies in two cities for a box of Plan B. The only pharmacy I could find that carried it charged me $70 for a dose after questioning. > > Why does it cost significantly more than a handful of regular BC pills would? ISTM your answer is contained in your OP (although the answer just provokes a further question). If you had to hunt across two cities and seven pharmacies, there is clearly a scarcity of this product. Supply and demand then has the usual effect. Scarcity (low supply) means that the one pharmacy that does stock the product can charge whatever-the-hell-they-want. The real underlying further question is how come other pharmacies don’t stock it? ---
**Author:** ![Atakapa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a8b319/32.png) [@Atakapa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atakapa)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/12 "2013-01-04T05:57:15Z")
> [@Sevencl](#): > > What kind of questioning? I wonder if you’d have gotten subsidised if you’d answered another way. Why exactly I needed it, what happened, age of sexual partner, etc. Thought it was rather inappropriate, but I was getting desperate. > [@](#): > > I’m thinking it’s gotta be partially supply and demand. Did the high price stop you from buying it? No, because at that point I was considering plans involving baseball bats and bottles of vodka if I found yet another pharmacy that didn’t carry the drug. I’m in the Bible Belt, so I wonder if the pharmacies not carrying it was a decision of morality on part of the owner. Thought about checking for a Planned Parenthood clinic, but the nearest one was an eight hour round trip away. ---
**Author:** ![Sevencl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sevencl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sevencl)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/13 "2013-01-04T05:59:16Z")
Offtopic, but why didn’t you just phone the pharmacies to ask if they stocked it rather than trek around two cities? ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/14 "2013-01-04T06:20:58Z")
The OP sounds like the plot to a bad student film. [http://planbthemovie.wordpress.com/](http://planbthemovie.wordpress.com/) ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/15 "2013-01-04T06:28:11Z")
> [@Atakapa](#): > > … I’m in the Bible Belt … … aaaand there’s the answer to my second question. It’s expensive in your area because local morality is against pharmacies stocking it, so those that do are in a position to charge a premium because they have a lock on the market. OP asked and answered. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 8:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/16 "2013-01-04T08:18:11Z")
Where I live, it ranges from $25 at a clinic down the street to $35 at Planned Parenthood to $55 at the local supermarket pharmacy. [This site](http://ec.princeton.edu/questions/dose.html) has information and dosage equivalents in commonly prescribed birth control pills if you can’t find Plan B but have a doc who would prescribe a month’s supply of pills for you. ---
**Author:** ![AngelSoft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angelsoft/32/440_2.png) [@AngelSoft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngelSoft)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/17 "2013-01-04T08:24:43Z")
Do you not have a Planned Parenthood in your area? When I went in a couple months ago to get started on some BC for hormonal reasons, they sent me off with a bag full of condoms and like…four doses of morning after pills. Even though I insisted I really didn’t need them. If you have one that’s accessible to you, check them out. They’re quite generous XD ---
**Author:** ![Pitchmeister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pitchmeister/32/3459_2.png) [@Pitchmeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pitchmeister)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/18 "2013-01-04T09:17:53Z")
> [@AngelSoft](#): > > Do you not have a Planned Parenthood in your area? When I went in a couple months ago to get started on some BC for hormonal reasons, they sent me off with a bag full of condoms and like…four doses of morning after pills. Even though I insisted I really didn’t need them. If you have one that’s accessible to you, check them out. They’re quite generous XD Apparently not… > [@Atakapa](#): > > Thought about checking for a Planned Parenthood clinic, but the nearest one was an eight hour round trip away. ---
**Author:** ![AaronX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7bcc69/32.png) [@AaronX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AaronX)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/19 "2013-01-04T11:52:08Z")
In Australia (Victoria), the user has to buy it in person. ---
**Author:** ![JLRogers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ce73a5/32.png) [@JLRogers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JLRogers)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020/20 "2013-01-04T11:57:32Z")
How in the world do they enforce that? Is the buyer obligated to use the drug in front of the pharamacist? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-plan-b-so-expensive/646020.md?page=2)