United Way of Norman Offers Prescription Discount Cards

By Adrianna Iwasinski, NEWS 9

NORMAN, Oklahoma -- Many know paying for name-brand prescriptions can get expensive, especially for those without insurance. But the United Way of Norman is trying to help families buffer some of that cost with a free prescription discount card.

Anyone interested can pick a card up at the United Way of Norman, but can also download the card online.

It's as easy as point and click. And that's the point. The United Way of Norman is trying to make getting one of the free prescription discount cards as easy as possible. That's why they've linked it to their Web site.

"It costs nothing to enroll, you don't do anything, you just hand this card to the pharmacy when you get your prescription," said Renee O'Leary with the United Way of Norman. "If you are paying full price, you can get a discount and it saves people money and keeps it in their pocket."

According to their database, United Way shows close to 500 families have used the card to save on their prescriptions. Per family, that equates to a savings of about $10 to $20 per prescription per month.

"People are saving up to 20 to 30 percent on a given prescription," O'Leary said.

Despite the hundreds of cards that have gone out, pharmacists like Tom Bishop of Central Pharmacy in Norman are yet to see one presented.

"I don't think I've ever filled a prescription for a person on this plan," Bishop said.

Though they are a small, independent pharmacy, they do participate in the program. But Bishop says there are other options that can provide greater savings over the discount card. One way is to use generics instead of the popular name-brand.

"I have been here 35 years and the name-brand is a shrinking section, is shrinking while the generic brands have grown many times over, so," said Bishop. "When someone comes in the door we want them to come back and so we try to be very competitive in our pricing, but whenever someone comes in here and we discover they are truly in need we do try to price their prescriptions as cheaply as possible."

Bishop said the prescription discount card is a good concept, especially if there are no other alternatives. The United Way of Norman said the prescription discount cards have saved Norman families close to $6,000.

Learn more about the free prescription drug card. View a list of the pharmacies who accept the card.