Seven Ways to Cut the Cost of Your Diabetes Medication

No one should have to choose between housing and healthcare

Every day, I have clients who tell me that they have to decide between groceries and medications, or between housing and healthcare. Some diabetes medications are inexpensive, and others are outrageously high. Your cost depends on your insurance plan (or lack thereof) as well as what kind of medication your doctor prescribes for you. If money’s tight, it’s worth taking a look at your current prescription list. You might be able to save some money by switching things up.

1. Use your formulary

A formulary is a list of medications preferred by your insurance plan. You get rewarded for using those medications by paying less for them. If you have health insurance or a Medicare Advantage plan, you most likely have a formulary. You can save a great deal of money by using the medications on the formulary instead of those that are not. Take your list of preferred medications with you each time you go to the doctor so that your doctor can choose from the lowest cost “Tier I” drugs whenever possible.

2. Maximize the dose of one medication before you add another one

Sometimes patients are taking less than the maximum dose of one diabetes medication before their physician adds a second one. That may be completely necessary in order to get your blood sugars where you want…