How to Get Prescription Drugs on the Cheap

Too bad sickness doesn’t notice when your health coverage runs out. When you’ve got a stubborn cough or an illness that just won’t go away, it doesn’t matter if you’re having financial trouble or if you’ve been out of work for the past year. You’ll still need medication if you hope to get better, and that medication doesn’t come cheap.

The average cost to fill a single prescription was $69.91 in 2007, according to a report by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, an amount that adds up quickly for families with multiple children getting sick at multiple times throughout the year. And in 2008 alone, the average increase in manufacturer price for brand name prescription medications went up 8.7 percent.

Since the recession began, however, a number of programs have begun to fill the void for cash-strapped families and individuals—offering free or reduced prescription medications to those in need. With so many programs available, it’s not so much a matter of finding a program as it is finding the program that is right for you…