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SALT LAKE CITY — Grocery stores are now offering prescriptions for pets, and the price is usually a bit different from what you'll see at the vet's office.
Jaime Montuoro, a pharmacist with Smith's, joined KSLAM with details. Play the video to see the interview.
She pointed out that pets get a lot of the same diseases as people - like arthritis, diabetes and infections - and use a lot of the same medicines. The Seattle Times reports drugs like prednisone, the antibiotic amoxicillin, and tramadol for arthritis and pain relief can be used for pets as well as humans, and sell for $4 as generics.
- Ask if an equivalent drug for humans exists and can be used (they're often less expensive)
- Buy generics and shop at big box retailers
- Comparison shop
- Check for coupons
The Times reports many veterinarians traditionally get about a fifth of their gross income from pet medicines. Pet owners may pay markups of 100 to 300 percent on prescription drugs from the vet.
According to Petside.com, veterinarians in about half of all states are not required to provide a prescription to clients, even if asked.
Last year, Utah Congressman Jim Matheson introduced a bill that would require vets to make prescriptions available, thus allowing pet owners to shop for the best price. The bill never made it out of committee.
In 2010, Target launched its PetRX pilot program in more than 100 stores in the southern U.S. At the end of 2011 it was in 670 stores in 25 states.
The Times reports Walgreens has been filling pet prescriptions since at least 2009. And in the past year, Kroger grocery stores began their own pet-med program.
Some vets say there's no way they can compete with generic prices and they shouldn't have to. Instead they can stock higher-priced, pet-only labeled drugs. Other vets say the majority of their income should be from services, not pharmaceuticals.
