Medicines can consume a substantial chunk of your budget, especially if you're taking several medicines. However, there are ways of reducing your spending on medicines without compromising your health.

Have your medicines reviewed

If you've been taking several medicines for some time, a review of your medicines may show that you no longer need all of them. It may also show that you're taking more than you need of one or more of them. Stopping any unneeded medicines will save you money and reduce your chances of medication problems.

Your GP can review your medicines, or they can arrange for a specially qualified pharmacist to conduct a Home Medicines Review. For more information, talk to your GP or pharmacist.

Consider generic medicines

When a medicine is first released, it is only available in a brand version. Once the patent for the medicine has expired, other companies can make copies of it. These copies are known as generic medicines. Generic versions of a medicine contain the same active ingredient, work in the same way, and must meet the same quality standards as the original brand medicine.

Companies sometimes charge higher prices for brand medicines, so a generic version may save you money.

In the case of prescription medicines, an extra charge, known as a brand premium, may be added to the standard charge for a prescription. For example, a prescription medicine with a brand premium of $4.00 will cost concession card holders $9.00 compared with $5.00 for the generic version. For other people, the brand medicine will cost a maximum of $35.30 compared with a maximum of $31.30 for the generic version.

If you want to consider changing to a generic version of your prescription medicine, talk to your doctor or pharmacist.

Ask the pharmacist if there are less expensive versions
of your medicines.

You can also save money by thinking about which brands of over-the-counter medicines you use. For example, well known brand painkillers such as Panadol (paracetamol) and Nurofen (ibuprofen) can be 2-3 times more expensive than some of the lesser known brands that contain the same active ingredient.

If you want to find out if there's a less expensive version of your medicine, talk to your pharmacist.

Check out the Safety Net

The Safety Net allows people who have spent more than a certain amount on medicines in a calendar year to get their prescription medicines cheaper or free of charge for the rest of the year.

To be eligible for the Safety Net, you must have a record of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) medicines you buy on a prescription record form. You can get the form from any pharmacy. If you have a family, ask the pharmacist about combining all your family members' medicines on one form.

If you buy your medicines from different pharmacies, you will need to give the prescription record form to the pharmacist every time you buy your prescription medicines. They will enter the details of your medicines on the form.

If you always go to the same pharmacy, ask the pharmacist if they can keep the record of your medicines for you. When you or your family have spent more than the threshold (minimum) amount on medicines in a calendar year, you will become eligible for a Safety Net card. The card will entitle you to cheaper or free medicines for the rest of the calendar year (Table 1).

If you buy any medicines with a brand premium, the brand premium will not count towards your Safety Net threshold. You will also have to pay the brand premium if you buy such medicines with a Safety Net card. For more information about the Safety Net, talk to your pharmacist.

Table 1. Safety Net thresholds and prescription costs in 2008

Ask about a different strength medicine

Many medicines come in different strengths, so sometimes you can save money by buying a different strength of the medicine.

For example, if you usually take two 100 mg tablets of a medicine at a time, and a 200 mg strength is available, you may be able to take just one 200 mg tablet at a time. This may mean that you need fewer prescriptions, which will save you money.

If this situation may apply to you, talk to your doctor.

Ask about an authority prescription

Doctors can prescribe some people more medicine than is normally allowed under a Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) prescription by using a special prescription known as an authority prescription.

For example, if you're taking double the normal dose of a medicine, your doctor may be able to obtain permission to prescribe that dose for you on an authority prescription.

This will mean that you can buy twice the amount normally allowed on a prescription for the cost of a normal prescription.

This will save you money, because you will use fewer prescriptions, and you will not have to visit the doctor as often to obtain prescriptions.

If this situation applies to you, ask your doctor if an authority prescription might be appropriate.

For more information about authority prescriptions, see Authority prescriptions explained article.

Ask about getting your medicine on prescription instead

In some cases, you can save money by buying a medicine on prescription rather than over the counter from a pharmacy or supermarket. This situation is more likely to apply if you are a concession card holder.

For example, if you use the full dose (6-8 tablets per day) of paracetamol (Panadol, Panamax, Tylenol, Dymadon P, etc) regularly for chronic arthritis pain, you may save money by buying the paracetamol on prescription. A prescription will allow you to buy 300 paracetamol tablets (equivalent of three packets of 100 tablets) for $5.00 if you're a concession card holder. Buying medicines on prescription also allows you to count the cost of the medicine towards your Safety Net tally, so you will reach the Safety Net threshold sooner.

If you use an over-the-counter medicine regularly, ask your doctor if it's available on prescription.

Talk to your doctor and pharmacist

If you're having difficulties with the cost of your medicines, it might be time to swallow your pride and tell your doctor and pharmacist. They may not be aware of your financial situation, and they may be able to suggest other ways you can save money on your medicines.