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Variation in drug prices at pharmacies: are prices higher in poorer areas?
Walid F Gellad1, Niteesh K Choudhry, Mark W Friedberg
1Division of General Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and RAND Corporation, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA. wgellad@rand.org
Objective:
To determine whether retail prices for prescription drugs are higher in poorer areas.
Data Sources:
The MyFloridarx.com website, which provides retail prescription prices at Florida pharmacies, and median ZIP code income from the 2000 Census.
Study Design:
We compared mean pharmacy prices for each of the four study drugs across ZIP code income groups. Pharmacies were classified as either chain pharmacies or independent pharmacies.
Data Collection:
Prices were downloaded in November 2006.
Principal Findings:
Across the four study drugs, mean prices were highest in the poorest ZIP codes: 9 percent above the statewide average. Independent pharmacies in the poorest ZIP codes charged the highest mean prices.
Conclusions:
Retail prescription prices appear to be higher in poorer ZIP codes of Florida.
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