The expiration date of the widely advertised Rx transfer incentive has been extended from Jan. 31 to leap day -- Feb. 29, 2012. That's according to the fine print (very small) at the top of the Kroger ad that just landed on my front porch.
In the green background, it says "We accept most major insurance plans, including EXPRESS SCRIPTS!" And then in a red burst to the right (covered up by fold-over), it says "Transfer a prescription, get $25 FREE Groceries!*" Then the asterisk goes to lots of small print -- the most interesting of which has to do with the new extended deadline -- the end of next month.
Reminder, as noted in previous posts, other pharmacies in the Columbus, Ohio, area are matching this offer (as long as you rip a copy of the ad off the top of a Kroger flyer ... or the top right of The Columbus Dispatch when they frequently buy that space to mention the $25 incentive).
Among those who will accept these:
-- Giant Eagle
-- CVS
If you get any grief, please let me know which location and pharmacist it was and when (date/time) by writing to RxCoupons@Gmail.com. Also, if you go to Kroger and they try to tell you that you're limited to one a day or one per person or one per household or 3 per life, I'd like to hear about that as well.
Thanks,
-Tom
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Friday, January 20, 2012
$25 incentive to transfer Rx by Jan. 31 to Kroger, Giant Eagle
As mentioned in previous post, Kroger continues to advertise on the
top right of The Columbus Dispatch they're promotion to give you $25 in
Rx Rewards for each prescription you transfer to them by Jan. 31, 2012.
For about the past month, I haven't seen any large ads in the Dispatch where they'd usually list a coupon you could clip out. But they are listing it across the bottom of their weekly sales flyer this week again -- it's in the red starburst off to the right of the flourescent green section that says "We accept most major insurance plans, including EXPRESS SCRIPTS!" (Lots of very small fine print below it about limitations/restrictions and how you need to ask pharmacist for the rest of the unadvertised limits per customer per life on Rx Rewards.)
Kroger is also advertising the $25 incentive to transfer prescriptions on the radio (heard it this week).
Friends have told me that Kroger is not requiring people to bring in a coupon during this promotion. Just mention it when you are dropping off the prescriptions to be transferred and make sure you pin them down on whether there are any restrictions/limitations -- can you transfer 4 and get $100? can you pick up all 4 on one day? or, like their written policy adopted a few years ago, do they make you pick them up one day at a time if you want to get $25 for each?
Giant Eagle will also accept these ... but with the one-a-day limit on coupons (theirs or a competitor's). And some pharmacists may OK you mentioning the Kroger offer without bringing in the top of the Dispatch or the bottom of the Kroger flyer. But make sure you bring one or the other to make sure you don't have any problems.
For about the past month, I haven't seen any large ads in the Dispatch where they'd usually list a coupon you could clip out. But they are listing it across the bottom of their weekly sales flyer this week again -- it's in the red starburst off to the right of the flourescent green section that says "We accept most major insurance plans, including EXPRESS SCRIPTS!" (Lots of very small fine print below it about limitations/restrictions and how you need to ask pharmacist for the rest of the unadvertised limits per customer per life on Rx Rewards.)
Kroger is also advertising the $25 incentive to transfer prescriptions on the radio (heard it this week).
Friends have told me that Kroger is not requiring people to bring in a coupon during this promotion. Just mention it when you are dropping off the prescriptions to be transferred and make sure you pin them down on whether there are any restrictions/limitations -- can you transfer 4 and get $100? can you pick up all 4 on one day? or, like their written policy adopted a few years ago, do they make you pick them up one day at a time if you want to get $25 for each?
Giant Eagle will also accept these ... but with the one-a-day limit on coupons (theirs or a competitor's). And some pharmacists may OK you mentioning the Kroger offer without bringing in the top of the Dispatch or the bottom of the Kroger flyer. But make sure you bring one or the other to make sure you don't have any problems.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
$25 incentive to transfer extended to end of January
As mentioned in previous post, Kroger continues to advertise on the top right of The Columbus Dispatch they're promotion to give you $25 in Rx Rewards for each prescription you transfer to them by Jan. 31, 2012.
For about the past month, I haven't seen any large ads in the Dispatch where they'd usually list a coupon you could clip out. But they are listing it across the bottom of their weekly sales flyer this week again -- it's in the red starburst off to the right of the flourescent green section that says "We accept most major insurance plans, including EXPRESS SCRIPTS!"
Friends have told me that Kroger is not requiring people to bring in a coupon during this promotion. Just mention it when you are dropping off the prescriptions to be transferred and make sure you pin them down on whether there are any restrictions/limitations -- can you transfer 4 and get $100? can you pick up all 4 on one day? or, like their written policy adopted a few years ago, do they make you pick them up one day at a time if you want to get $25 for each?
Giant Eagle will also accept these ... but with the one-a-day limit on coupons (theirs or a competitor's). And some pharmacists may OK you mentioning the Kroger offer without bringing in the top of the Dispatch or the bottom of the Kroger flyer.
For about the past month, I haven't seen any large ads in the Dispatch where they'd usually list a coupon you could clip out. But they are listing it across the bottom of their weekly sales flyer this week again -- it's in the red starburst off to the right of the flourescent green section that says "We accept most major insurance plans, including EXPRESS SCRIPTS!"
Friends have told me that Kroger is not requiring people to bring in a coupon during this promotion. Just mention it when you are dropping off the prescriptions to be transferred and make sure you pin them down on whether there are any restrictions/limitations -- can you transfer 4 and get $100? can you pick up all 4 on one day? or, like their written policy adopted a few years ago, do they make you pick them up one day at a time if you want to get $25 for each?
Giant Eagle will also accept these ... but with the one-a-day limit on coupons (theirs or a competitor's). And some pharmacists may OK you mentioning the Kroger offer without bringing in the top of the Dispatch or the bottom of the Kroger flyer.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
$25 incentive to transfer extended to Jan. 31, 2012
On the top right of the front page of The Columbus Dispatch today (Sunday, Jan. 8, 2012), Kroger ran another ad mentioning their offer to give $25 in Rx Rewards (towards groceries and other items at their stores) for each prescription transferred to them from a competitor.
Similar ads appeared on the front page of the same paper three other days last week. No coupon was run. But you can simply mention the ad and the pharmacy at Kroger should honor it. Giant Eagle (at least the one at Sawmill and Bethel) may still honor you mentioning Kroger's offer -- and match it.es or list of drugs (with Rx #s and the name and phone number of where you're transferring your medications from).
This extends to Jan. 31, 2012, the offer that originally was listed as expiring at the end of November ... and later listed as ending at end of December.
It might help to rip the ad off the front page of the paper and take it with you as sort of a "coupon" to Giant Eagle ... or anywhere else you might ask to accept it / match it -- such as CVS or Meijer.
The Kroger weekly sales flyer this week in the Columbus, OH, area has a pharmacy ad at bottom with green highlight about "We accept major insurance plans, including EXPRESS SCRIPTS!" and a red splash that mentions "Transfer a prescription, get $25 FREE Groceries!" with lots of fine print details including "Additional restrictions and limits apply. See pharmacy for details."
What's with the blitz about EXPRESS SCRIPTS?
You may have noticed the blitz by CVS and Target and Meijer and other pharmacies touting that they accept EXPRESS SCRIPTS -- a prescription benefits company that has lowered what it pays pharmacies so much that Walgreens wisely refused to keep accepting their insurance at the start of 2012. Unlike other things sold at stores, pharmacies do not make a percentage of what you pay or what you pay plus what your health plan's prescription benefit pays. Most of what they are paid is a set dispensing fee per bottle filled. It varies widely -- I've heard of $1 to $2 -- but this latest absurdity of Express Scripts (which prefers to have as few retail competitors as possible so its clients will mail in orders to their mail-order pharmacy).
Expressing displeasure with "Express Scripts" ...
By the way, Express Scripts is the worst pharmacy -- mail-order or otherwise -- that I've ever dealt with. My first displeasure to try them was in the past month. It has taken 3 weeks so far to not get me drugs while they harass my doc about changes they want to make to prescriptions -- demanding an answer of "Deny" for a second one rather than just understand that as a given when they were sent back one that said "Accept" substitution when they sent her two requests. And, even if she sends back the faxed form with "Deny" marked, the next time I mail in a prescription from her for the same drug on their "block and try to switch" list, they'll do the same thing again ... unless she writes "DAW" (Dispense As Written) on there.
Most annoying is that during the 2-week delay, it just shows on their Express-Scripts.com website that it's "Processing." And the Details give no details about which one or two or more are holding up all the rest. Yep, the won't send any until they hear back from the doc about all of them. Absurd! The useless Tier 1 "customer service" reps at Express Scripts who answer your calls aren't allowed to tell you anything except try to placate you with b.s. -- "It looks like everything is going fine. It sometimes takes two or three weeks to fully process an order."
TIP: Besides escaping the voice tree maze/jail with a "zero" (0) followed by a (1), don't waste too much time with that first human voice on the phone. Ask for a supervisor and ask for specifics about which drugs in the order are on the "stop list" and what date things were sent to your physician to request an OK to substitute a different brand or drug or even dosage -- often moving toward a drug manufacturer that they have "agreements" with (maybe getting some kickbacks or better deals -- like with AccuCheck and OneTouch over Bayer's Contour for glucose test strips and lancets -- or where they are trying to punish a big company like Bayer on glucose test sales to extort a better price on other medications where only brand names are available ... or are very popular with physicians).
Unfortunately, many companies and institutions -- including Ohio State University -- have moved from Medco Health and other prescription benefit providers to Express Scripts at the promise of reducing the cost they pay for prescriptions. The way they do this is increasingly squeeze customers so they have fewer choices -- fewer convenient and high-quality places they can go for care and prescriptions and fewer prescriptions that are included on the formulary. Even things as minor as the brand of of glucose testing strips or lancets that will be covered at a 30% co-pay vs. a 50% co-pay is being implemented. So, if I don't want to pay almost double for testing strips, I need to buy new glucose test units and use strips that require a blood sample almost twice as big -- and that requires a deeper/wider puncture that hurts more than twice as much! ;-)
This year, they have started sending confusing letters -- on their own stationery and that of employers -- that say you have to get all of your maintenance prescriptions from Express Scripts "home delivery" service or else you won't qualify for "special value price" on certain medications. Now you have to know that the special value price is only
Similar ads appeared on the front page of the same paper three other days last week. No coupon was run. But you can simply mention the ad and the pharmacy at Kroger should honor it. Giant Eagle (at least the one at Sawmill and Bethel) may still honor you mentioning Kroger's offer -- and match it.es or list of drugs (with Rx #s and the name and phone number of where you're transferring your medications from).
This extends to Jan. 31, 2012, the offer that originally was listed as expiring at the end of November ... and later listed as ending at end of December.
It might help to rip the ad off the front page of the paper and take it with you as sort of a "coupon" to Giant Eagle ... or anywhere else you might ask to accept it / match it -- such as CVS or Meijer.
The Kroger weekly sales flyer this week in the Columbus, OH, area has a pharmacy ad at bottom with green highlight about "We accept major insurance plans, including EXPRESS SCRIPTS!" and a red splash that mentions "Transfer a prescription, get $25 FREE Groceries!" with lots of fine print details including "Additional restrictions and limits apply. See pharmacy for details."
What's with the blitz about EXPRESS SCRIPTS?
You may have noticed the blitz by CVS and Target and Meijer and other pharmacies touting that they accept EXPRESS SCRIPTS -- a prescription benefits company that has lowered what it pays pharmacies so much that Walgreens wisely refused to keep accepting their insurance at the start of 2012. Unlike other things sold at stores, pharmacies do not make a percentage of what you pay or what you pay plus what your health plan's prescription benefit pays. Most of what they are paid is a set dispensing fee per bottle filled. It varies widely -- I've heard of $1 to $2 -- but this latest absurdity of Express Scripts (which prefers to have as few retail competitors as possible so its clients will mail in orders to their mail-order pharmacy).
Expressing displeasure with "Express Scripts" ...
By the way, Express Scripts is the worst pharmacy -- mail-order or otherwise -- that I've ever dealt with. My first displeasure to try them was in the past month. It has taken 3 weeks so far to not get me drugs while they harass my doc about changes they want to make to prescriptions -- demanding an answer of "Deny" for a second one rather than just understand that as a given when they were sent back one that said "Accept" substitution when they sent her two requests. And, even if she sends back the faxed form with "Deny" marked, the next time I mail in a prescription from her for the same drug on their "block and try to switch" list, they'll do the same thing again ... unless she writes "DAW" (Dispense As Written) on there.
Most annoying is that during the 2-week delay, it just shows on their Express-Scripts.com website that it's "Processing." And the Details give no details about which one or two or more are holding up all the rest. Yep, the won't send any until they hear back from the doc about all of them. Absurd! The useless Tier 1 "customer service" reps at Express Scripts who answer your calls aren't allowed to tell you anything except try to placate you with b.s. -- "It looks like everything is going fine. It sometimes takes two or three weeks to fully process an order."
TIP: Besides escaping the voice tree maze/jail with a "zero" (0) followed by a (1), don't waste too much time with that first human voice on the phone. Ask for a supervisor and ask for specifics about which drugs in the order are on the "stop list" and what date things were sent to your physician to request an OK to substitute a different brand or drug or even dosage -- often moving toward a drug manufacturer that they have "agreements" with (maybe getting some kickbacks or better deals -- like with AccuCheck and OneTouch over Bayer's Contour for glucose test strips and lancets -- or where they are trying to punish a big company like Bayer on glucose test sales to extort a better price on other medications where only brand names are available ... or are very popular with physicians).
Unfortunately, many companies and institutions -- including Ohio State University -- have moved from Medco Health and other prescription benefit providers to Express Scripts at the promise of reducing the cost they pay for prescriptions. The way they do this is increasingly squeeze customers so they have fewer choices -- fewer convenient and high-quality places they can go for care and prescriptions and fewer prescriptions that are included on the formulary. Even things as minor as the brand of of glucose testing strips or lancets that will be covered at a 30% co-pay vs. a 50% co-pay is being implemented. So, if I don't want to pay almost double for testing strips, I need to buy new glucose test units and use strips that require a blood sample almost twice as big -- and that requires a deeper/wider puncture that hurts more than twice as much! ;-)
This year, they have started sending confusing letters -- on their own stationery and that of employers -- that say you have to get all of your maintenance prescriptions from Express Scripts "home delivery" service or else you won't qualify for "special value price" on certain medications. Now you have to know that the special value price is only
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