Survey | Why are the same drugs priced differently online and offline in the same pharmacy?
2024-08-13
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In the same pharmacy, the price of the same medicine purchased offline is much higher than that on the online platform. Recently, many consumers have had such experiences. The reporter visited many pharmacies and found that this phenomenon is very common.
Where do the differences in drug prices come from? How can consumers spend less money? The National Medical Insurance Administration recently issued a letter on launching a special campaign of "going online to check drug prices, comparing data, and implementing governance".It is clearly stated that in the monitoring of drug price information, the “instant delivery price” of online drug sales platforms should be introduced for comparison with drug prices from other channels to address the problem of unreasonable high drug prices.
Phenomenon
The same drug in the same pharmacy is more expensive offline
"I thought they were all in the same pharmacy, so the prices should be the same, but I didn't expect there to be such a big difference." Not long ago, Ms. Liu suddenly felt a sore throat. Considering that she didn't have a fever and no other symptoms for the time being, she decided to buy some medicine to relieve the pain. "I usually go to the nearest pharmacy to buy it. There are two or three around the community, which is quite convenient."
Arriving at the drugstore, Ms. Liu directly asked the clerk to help find the Pueraria lobata Anti-inflammatory Tablets. "I used to take this and it worked. I even wrote down the specific manufacturer." The clerk brought the Pueraria lobata Anti-inflammatory Tablets produced by Yunnan Baiyao Group Co., Ltd. according to Ms. Liu's request. This medicine has two plates per box, 24 tablets per plate, 0.3 grams per tablet, and the selling price is 28.5 yuan. After returning home, Ms. Liu thought that she could also buy medicine on the food delivery platform, so she searched for it. It turned out to be only 15.8 yuan. In the e-commerce platform's instant delivery service, if you choose this store, the same Pueraria lobata Anti-inflammatory Tablets can enjoy a special price of 9.9 yuan. "A box is actually more than ten yuan more expensive, which is outrageous."
The reporter went to the drugstore near Shilibao where Ms. Liu went and asked the clerk if they had Pueraria lobata anti-inflammatory tablets. The clerk went to the shelf to look for medicine and continued to recommend other medicines, "You have a sore throat? You can take it with Andrographolide Pills. This is also a Chinese patent medicine that can fight bacteria and reduce inflammation, and is specifically used to treat sore throats."
The price tag shows that this Pudilan anti-inflammatory tablet costs 28.5 yuan in the store, and even the member price is 27.9 yuan. The clerk said, "I don't know how much it sells for on the online platform, but this is the price in the store anyway."
In fact, this is not an isolated case. In another pharmacy near Qingnian Road, the retail price of this Pudilan Anti-inflammatory Tablet is 24.7 yuan, and the member price is 24 yuan. However, on the online platform, this drug, also from the pharmacy, can enjoy a 4.82% discount, and the actual price is only 11.9 yuan.
In addition to Pueraria lobata anti-inflammatory tablets, other medicines also have this phenomenon. Take the hydrocortisone butyrate cream with the trade name of Euzor as an example. A 20-gram tube is sold at 28.9 yuan in the store, but only 12.7 yuan on the online platform. Since the starting price is less than 20 yuan, you need to place an order with other medicines. If you choose to pair it with Pueraria lobata anti-inflammatory tablets, the delivery fee is originally shown to be 8 yuan, but the event reduces the delivery fee by 8 yuan, so the delivery fee can be waived.The two drugs cost only 25.1 yuan on the online platform, a total discount of 29 yuan. However, if purchased at an offline pharmacy, the two drugs cost 53.6 yuan, more than double the online price.
Afterwards, the reporter selected 999 Ganmaoling Granules with a specification of 9 bags per box and 10 grams per bag, and compared prices at three pharmacies near Wangjing. It was found that offline pharmacies all sold for 18 yuan per box, while online platforms only sold for 12.4 yuan. In comparison, the price difference between online and offline platforms for azithromycin dry suspension, whose trade name is Xishumei, is even greater. Among them,An offline pharmacy sells it for 59.9 yuan, while the online platform only costs 32.8 yuan. Including the delivery and packaging fees, it only costs 33.3 yuan, which is nearly half the price of offline pharmacies. As a commonly used drug, ibuprofen sustained-release capsules with the trade name Fenbid also have different prices online and offline. On the online platform, this 24-capsule drug, plus packaging and delivery fees, costs as little as 21.4 yuan per box, while offline pharmacies sell it for 36 yuan.
Causes
Online platforms offer subsidies for activities
Why are the prices of drugs on online platforms cheaper than those in offline pharmacies? A clerk at a pharmacy near Wangjing explained, "This is an activity of the platform, paid for by the platform, and has nothing to do with our pharmacy. If you think it is not cost-effective, you can buy it online. It has no impact on us." A clerk at another pharmacy said frankly,"There is competition among online platforms, and they are constantly competing with each other. This has nothing to do with pharmacies."
At a drugstore near Shilibao, the clerk told the reporter, "There may be subsidies for buying on online platforms. I don't know exactly how much. If you place an order from there, you will get it from us." The clerk at a drugstore near Qingnian Road also gave a similar answer."The medicines in the store are sold at original prices. Online platforms may hold promotional activities, mainly to attract customers."
In this regard, the customer service of an online platform said, "Online, merchants or platforms will have corresponding discounts and full-reduction activities, but the preferential prices of some medicines will have quantity restrictions, and the specific details will be subject to the event introduction."
During the investigation, the reporter also found that offline pharmacies have different policies on medical insurance payment, and there are also large differences in the online and offline prices of over-the-counter drugs and prescription drugs.
Starting from July 1 this year, insured persons in Beijing can use their personal medical insurance accounts to purchase OTC (over-the-counter) drugs at 300 designated medical insurance retail pharmacies on JD.com and Meituan drug purchasing platforms. The drug costs are paid from personal medical insurance accounts, and the delivery and packaging fees are paid by the individuals. After placing an order online, the drug purchasing platform will deliver the drugs immediately. Online drug purchases also support the mutual use of personal medical insurance accounts between registered family members in the city.
"For over-the-counter drugs, you can now use your personal medical insurance account whether you order from an online platform or buy directly in a store." A clerk at a pharmacy near Shilibao said that if it is a prescription drug, personal medical insurance accounts cannot be used online at present, "but if you buy it in an offline store, prescription drugs can also be swiped with medical insurance."
The reporter observed that, taking the commonly used prescription drug for diabetes patients, Glucophage Metformin Hydrochloride Tablets as an example, the price of 60 tablets per box in offline pharmacies is 76.5 yuan. The original price is 85 yuan on the online takeaway platform, and 1 box is limited to 1 box to enjoy 1.22% discount, and the price is 69.9 yuan. If you buy 2 boxes at the same time, it is equivalent to 77.45 yuan per box. In the e-commerce platform's second delivery service, the original price of the 60-tablet package in this pharmacy is 73 yuan per box. After using the coupon of 3 off for 29, the price is 70 yuan per box, which is basically the same as offline stores.It can be seen from this that prescription drugs are usually not a traffic-generating tool for online platforms, and the price difference between online and offline is not that big.
expect
Price comparison system ensures transparent drug prices
How to avoid unreasonably high drug prices?At the beginning of this year, the National Medical Insurance Administration launched a special price control campaign for "four same drugs" (i.e. drugs with the same generic name, brand, dosage form, and specification), pushing the prices of drugs with the same generic name, brand, dosage form, and specification back to a reasonable range, and a number of pharmaceutical companies took the initiative to lower their online prices. Afterwards, the National Medical Insurance Administration issued a letter on launching a special campaign of "going online, checking drug prices, comparing data, and grasping governance". In drug price monitoring, the prices of drugs on the online drug sales platform, such as "takeaway price", "hourly delivery", "instant delivery", and "limited time delivery", are introduced as anchor points for the same-day instant delivery mode of drugs in the same city, and compared with the prices of drugs from other channels, so as to control unreasonable high prices.
Recently, various places have launched various "price comparison tools" in an effort to make information such as drug prices more open and transparent.
Taking the "Medical Insurance Price Pass" launched by the Shenzhen Medical Insurance Bureau as an example, the system covers more than 240,000 medicines and medical consumables and more than 7,300 medical service price items. Through the "Shenzhen Medical Insurance" public account, official website and other channels, it is open to the public for medical price query and comparison, medical treatment and drug purchase navigation and other functions.
The designated retail pharmacy drug price comparison system launched in Xi'an this year allows insured persons to compare medical insurance drug prices in real time on a mobile app. The reporter opened the "Xi'an Medical Insurance" app, entered the "Medical Insurance Services" column, selected "Pharmacy Drug Price Comparison", entered the search page, entered the drug name, and found the sales price of the drug in designated retail pharmacies.
On the official website of Beijing Medical Insurance Bureau, the reporter clicked on "Convenient Query" and found that he could query designated retail pharmacies. Pharmacy information includes the name of the pharmacy, the region it belongs to, the address of the unit, etc., but it is impossible to query the specific drug prices. The reporter called the Beijing Medical Insurance Bureau, and the staff replied that there is currently no system that can query the prices of offline pharmacies. If you need to know the price of drugs, you can also go to the online platform to compare prices.
In fact, price comparison does not require all pharmacies to adopt a "one-size-fits-all" pricing. The "Xi'an Medical Insurance" applet clearly states that according to the "Price Law of the People's Republic of China", general drugs are subject to market pricing, and pharmacies have the right to decide their own sales prices.
"It is not realistic to have all drug stores have the same drug prices. We would rather see drug prices being open and transparent." Ms. Liu hopes that drug price comparison systems can be gradually launched in various places in the future to make drug prices clear and traceable. "It is obviously much more convenient to compare prices from three stores on a mobile phone than to go to each store offline. This can also guide drug prices to gradually become reasonable."
