No doubt that’s true. But $85 for a laxative? I couldn’t stomach flushing that much down the drain for something that spicy food and a large iced coffee seemed able to accomplish for a fraction of the price.
A truce was struck when the pharmacist realized the store did not have Plenvu in stock. Leaving the pharmacy equal parts outraged and determined, I made it my mission to get a discount on that “medicine.”
Manufactured by Salix Pharmaceuticals, Plenvu is a commonly recommended laxative for bowel prep ahead of a colonoscopy. It comes as a powder divided into three packets. The night before the procedure, you dissolve the first in cold water and drink the resulting sludge and then 16 ounces of a clear liquid. The other two packets get mixed with 16 ounces of water the morning of—but at least 2 hours before—the procedure, followed by another 16-ounce clear-liquid chaser.
When I was preparing for my colonoscopy in May, the retail price of Plenvu on the prescription drug price tracking and discount site GoodRx, without insurance, ranged from $151 at Wegmans to $169 at Target/CVS. At Amazon Pharmacy, the retail price without insurance was $155.58, or $147.44 (5 percent off) if you’re an Amazon Prime member.
Those prices could lead a normal person to believe an $85 copay is a pretty good deal. But this cost-conscious consumer couldn’t help thinking about how much of my paycheck already goes to a health insurance plan that includes a prescription drug plan. In that context, a 50 percent “discount” just didn’t sit well.
My first attempt to prep for less was an internet search for a manufacturer’s coupon. I was not disappointed. When I saw the “Savings and Resources” tab on the Plenvu website I knew I was on the right track. In addition to a Medicare Part D coupon program for out-of-pocket costs exceeding $60, there was a Plenvu Co-pay Assistance Card. A few clicks later and that card, with its offer for commercially insured patients with or without coverage for Plenvu to pay as little as $55, was on its way to my printer.
A few days ahead of my procedure, a nurse from the endoscopy center phoned to verify my insurance info and answer any questions I might have. Before finishing the call I told her the $85 copay for a laxative had me taken aback, and she replied, “Oh, you can go the OTC route.” Excuse me, over the counter?
Two minutes after we hung up, a text link with instructions for the Miralax prep arrived on my phone. Miralax is a brand-name, over-the-counter version of polyethylene glycol 3350 (PEG), a polymer-based laxative that increases the amount of water your intestine absorbs, making stool softer and easier to pass. When combined with over-the-counter laxative tablets bisacodyl (widely available under the brand name Dulcolax) you get a one-two punch that will have your insides endoscope-ready in under 24 hours.
