FAQs
Why did Consumer Reports initiate the Consumer Reports Health Best Buy Drugs™ project?
What's on this Web site?
How should I use this information?
What if I have health insurance that pays for my drugs?
What if I have Medicare drug coverage?
What's the evidence behind the Best Buy Drug evaluations?
How do we pick our Best Buys?
Will the prices for drugs on this Web site reflect what I'll pay at the pharmacy?
Can I use the information provided on this Web site to buy drugs online?
What if my doctor or pharmacist rejects your recommendations or Best Buy picks?
What is a generic drug? Are they just as good?
How can I contact Consumer Reports Health Best Buy Drugs?
Q: Why did Consumer Reports initiate the Consumer Reports Health Best Buy Drugs™ project?
A: This project helps fill an important gap in consumers' understanding of prescription medicines. It will tell you about the drugs available to treat specific illnesses and diseases, the differences among them, and how they stack up against each other. Our independent and unbiased reports will help you talk with your doctor about your treatment options, and improve your chances of getting a prescription medicine that both suits your medical needs and gives you the best value for your health care dollar. Our reports will also help you take your medicines safely, and stick with your treatment regimens.
Q: What's on this Web site?
A: The main thing you'll find is a series of consumer-friendly reports on drug categories. Each runs 12 to 20 pages or so. A separate 2-page summary of each report is available as well, in both English and Spanish. You'll also find a series of brief publications in the box titled, “Our Advice on Rx Drugs.” These will help you save money when you choose and purchase prescription drugs, even if you have health insurance. They are written to present basic information in a clear easy-to-understand way, and are available in both English and Spanish. All our publications are in PDF format so you'll need Adobe Acrobat to download them.
Q: How should I use this information?
A:The information on this Web site is not intended to replace the judgment of your doctors or pharmacists. It is meant to arm you with information to enhance communication with your health care providers. We urge you to print out the reports and show them to your doctor and/or pharmacist. Some doctors and pharmacists are not as familiar as others with the kind of scientific evaluations our reports are based on. Also, studies show that many doctors don't typically take price into account when prescribing medicines, even for people who have no insurance coverage. So this information could help you open that discussion. The evidence shows quite strongly that many lower-cost drugs (such as generics) are just as effective as more expensive brand-name drugs.
Q: What if I have health insurance that pays for my drugs?
A: You will learn about your treatment options and which medicines have been judged to be the most effective and safe. So regardless of price, you could learn that you have been prescribed a less effective drug or one which has raised safety concerns. Our reports also may guide you to medicines that are as effective or more effective than the one you are taking, and/or which have lower co-pays under your insurance plan. That is often the case these days with generic drugs, for example. You can learn here how the generic alternative in the category of medicine you need stacks up against newer brand-name drugs. In addition, choosing high-quality, lower-cost prescription (and sometimes non-prescription) medicines can help reduce health care costs overall for your employer, your health insurer, and you.
Q: What if I have Medicare drug coverage?
A: The information on this Web site can help guide seniors to high-quality low-cost medicines that could save them money, no matter what kind of Part D coverage they have.
Q: What's the evidence behind the Best Buy Drug evaluations?
A: Our drug reports are based on comprehensive, independent and unbiased reviews of the scientific evidence on the drugs in each class we evaluate. The reviews were conducted by teams of physicians and researchers at several medical schools under the auspices of the Drug Effectiveness Review Project (DERP). DERP is a first-of-its-kind U.S.-based 13-state initiative to evaluate the comparative effectiveness and safety of commonly used prescription drugs. The states use the information to help guide drug coverage policy for their Medicaid programs. Researchers at the Oregon Health & Science University coordinate the project. None of the research teams have any financial interest in any pharmaceutical company or product. Their detailed findings are presented in a series of technical reports. Those are available by clicking here. Dr. Mark Helfand of the Oregon Health & Science University serves as a consultant to the Best Buy Drugs project, helping us translate the DERP analyses for consumers. The drug prices we use are from a healthcare information company that tracks the sales of prescription drugs in the U.S.
Q: How do we pick our Best Buys?
A: Our Best Buy picks are based on assessments of all the drugs in a class, and a comparison of the drugs in that class to each other. The main criteria we use are a drug's effectiveness, it's safety, the side effects it may cause, it's convenience of use (for example, how many pills you have to take each day), its track record in studies and actual use, and of course how much it costs relative to others drugs. There is no set formula for choosing our Best Buys. The factors differ in each category, and some of those factors are quite subtle. However, in general, our Best Buys are chosen because they are: (a) as effective as all the other drugs in the category, or more so; (b) as safe and cause no more - and usually fewer - side effects than other drugs in the category; and (c) cost less on average than other drugs in the category. That is not always true, though. Several of the Best Buys have been chosen because of their superior effectiveness or safety profile even though they cost more. Overall, a drug's effectiveness is the most important criteria in choosing our Best Buys.
Q: Will the prices for drugs in our reports reflect what I'll pay at the pharmacy?
A: They might not. First, if you have drug coverage, you'll only pay part of the cost for your drugs out of your own pocket. Your employer pays the rest. The prices and monthly costs we cite in our reports reflect the total cost paid for a drug, and they reflect the average price based on a nationwide sample of stores and pharmacies. Also, the prices we present reflect those paid by cash-paying customers (for example, people without health insurance). As such, they don't include the discounts that your health plan or pharmacy benefit manager negotiates. The prices for drugs vary quite widely. So, if you are paying significantly more than the average price we cite for a drug, you may want to check other places you could buy the drug and talk to your doctor or pharmacist about the dilemma.
Q: Can I use the information provided in your reports to buy drugs online?
A: Yes, once you and your doctor choose the drug that's best for you, you can shop for it anywhere to try and get the best price. You will likely be able to beat the prices we cite by shopping online, where drugs are usually less expensive. You will also likely be able to get better prices at the large discount store in your area. Just like other products, many drugs are less expensive at such stores. If your doctor and you settle on several drug treatment options, you may want to shop online or at different stores to see which one is the least expensive under the terms of your health plan's coverage. Be careful to use only reputable online Web sites.
Q: What if my doctor or pharmacist rejects your recommendations or Best Buy picks?
A: This is certainly possible. Our Best Buy drug picks are not intended to apply to every single person. Individual medical circumstances may well dictate that you need a drug that we have not recommended. We believe, however, that our advice will apply to most people who need medicines in the categories we evaluate. The important thing is to open a dialogue with your doctor about why he or she is choosing a particular drug for you. If your doctor rejects the scientifically based information we present, we think it is reasonable for you to expect an explanation.
Q: What is a generic drug? Are they just as good?
A: A generic drug is a copy of a brand name drug, using the same active ingredients that work in the same way in the body. Generic drugs come in the same dosages as brand name drugs, and they have the same risks and benefits as their brand-name counterparts. The FDA holds both brand-name and generic drug facilities to the same high standards of good manufacturing processes. Generic drugs become available when a brand drug losses its patent protection. Generic drugs make up about half of all prescriptions. They can be viewed as "tried and true" and tested by time. However, in some cases (and not as often as is commonly believed) newer brand name drugs have fewer side effects or are more effective. Generic drugs are almost always less expensive than brands.
Q: How can I contact Consumer Reports Health Best Buy Drugs?
A: If you have any questions that were not answered in these FAQs, please contact us.
Any organization interested in republication for broader distribution of the information on this Web site should contact Wendy Wintman at wintwe@consumer.org.
