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Pet Owners Take Advantage Of Drug Discounts

Tribune photo by Cliff McBride

Cocoa's lunch also contains his prescription painkiller. His owner, Heather Brooke, buys his prescription medications at Target, which charges far less for certain drugs than the vet's office would.

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By JEROME R. STOCKFISCH, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 18, 2008

CLEARWATER - There's a new breed of customer taking advantage of retailers' free and low-cost prescription programs.

Among them is Cocoa, a Clearwater mutt easing through old age with the help of common pain medication and anti-anemia injections obtained at her - make that her owners' - local Target store. Cocoa is among an uncounted, but apparently growing, number of pets that are ultimately benefiting from recent programs to lower the cost of medications to lure shoppers into retail outlets.

"I think it gives owners and their pets a great opportunity to get medications they might need, or that might make their life more comfortable, especially if it's something a family wouldn't be able to afford otherwise," said Heather Brooke, who hides Cocoa's Tramadol dose in her daily feedings.

And the savings can be significant. Cocoa's 90 monthly doses of the painkiller cost Brooke $6, while a local veterinary pharmacy provides them for as much as $49. The 15-year-old's biweekly dose of Epogen, which Brooke or her husband, a paramedic, inject themselves, costs about $32 at Target. It would cost them as much as $83 at the vet.

Wal-Mart kicked off the cheap-drug trend last year when it announced its in-store pharmacies would drop prices on hundreds of generics to $4 for a 30-day supply. Target and others followed suit, and this year, Publix announced it would give away 14-day supplies of common antibiotics for free.

The stores don't mind that four-legged patients are benefiting as well as the two-legged variety.

"The bottom line is, as long as they have a legitimate prescription from their veterinarian, we welcome them," said Shannon Patten, spokeswoman for Publix. "Our pharmacy is in the business of helping. If in this case it's helping dogs, that's fine by us."

Reporter Jerome R. Stockfisch can be reached at (813) 259-8402 or jstockfisch@tampatrib.com.

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