Walgreens has launched a digital tool designed to help customers find lower prices on their prescription medications.
The new Rx Savings Finder searches multiple discount card websites for free, third-party discount cards, the healthcare, pharmacy and retail firm said in a Thursday (Nov. 30) press release.
“The response to our pilot program has been overwhelmingly positive, with both customers and our dedicated pharmacy staff reporting significant time and cost savings,” Walgreens Chief Pharmacy Officer Rick Gates said in the release.
The Walgreens Rx Savings Finder offers savings on thousands of medications and provides transparent pricing before the customer goes to the checkout counter, according to the release.
Customers can access the discount card prices by text message or email and then present them to a Walgreens pharmacy team member, the release said.
The tool is available to all Walgreens customers at no cost, per the release. It is available online and has no monthly subscription or yearly membership.
Walgreens is launching this tool at a time when more than 131 million Americans take at least one prescription medicine, and one-third of them have avoided a prescription refill to reduce costs, Gates said in the release.
“That is why we have launched Walgreens Rx Savings Finder — to empower our customers with transparent prescription costs and help them save money on medications,” Gates said.
The tool also arrives at a time when the rising use of prescription drug discount cards is leading to significant implications for pharmacy chains. It was reported in September that these discount cards, such as those offered by GoodRx, are negatively impacting the margins of retail pharmacies.
GoodRx reported on Nov. 9 that the number of monthly active customers for its website and mobile app offering discounts on prescription drug prices stood at 6.1 million, up from 5.8 million a year earlier.
During a conference call with analysts, GoodRx interim CEO Scott Wagner took note of the continued “hybrid retail pharmacy strategy” that in part leverages retail partnerships. In one example, the company launched a direct program with Walgreens on nearly 200 medications during the most recent quarter.
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