Today's NY Post: VIAGRA'$ ON THE RISE
By WILLIAM SHERMAN
With New Yorkers clamoring for the new
love drug Viagra, local pharmacies are
reaping a windfall - with some marking
up the impotence pills by a staggering
128 percent, a Post survey shows.
The manufacturer, Pfizer, charges drug
stores $7 a pill, which were widely
expected to retail for $10 - but are going
for as much as $16 apiece.
With demand outstripping supply, most
pharmacies are cranking up the tab for
consumers far higher than the 33
percent typical industry markup.
In The Post's random price sampling,
six drugstores in each borough were
asked how much they charge for a
prescription of 20 50-milligram tablets.
Lascoff Pharmacy on Manhattan's
Upper East Side charged the most for
the sex pills - $12.75 per tablet. That's
82 percent more than wholesale.
The best price was at Mil Rue Chemists
in Ridgewood, Queens, where they
were selling for $8, a mere 14 percent
markup.
The average markup was about 42
percent.
Several pharmacists said they charge
as much as $16 a pill - a markup of 128
percent - when someone just wants to
try them out and brings in a prescription
for only three or four.
The survey showed variations of up to
52 percent between the high and low
prices quoted for a 20-pill prescription.
Some pharmacists advised consumers
to check with their insurance companies
to determine if the pills are a covered
benefit.
"Look, let's face it, $200 or more for 20
pills is a lot of money to spend if you're
not covered," said a pharmacist who
works at Astor Pharmacy in Astoria,
Queens.
"A lot of people try out with two or three
at first to see if it works."
The New York State Insurance
Department has directed insurers to set
guidelines on coverage for the drug.
City Consumer Affairs Commissioner
Jules Polonetsky was not surprised at
the wide variation in the price of the
drug.
"Pharmacies don't advertise prices and
they know that most people simply buy
at the store closest to their office or their
home. What all this shows is that the
smart consumer shops around, you
really have to do that," said Polonetsky.
A Manhattan druggist, who asked to
remain anonymous, said, "The guys who
are gouging are making a big mistake
because people are going to find out
and since this ^Viagra_ is a repeat
business, customers aren't going to
come back.
"It's not like someone coming in for a
one-time purchase of face cream."
The pills, which allow impotent men to
get erections, have captured more than
90 percent of the market and also sent
Pfizer stock soaring.
Many men who are not impotent are
trying to get prescriptions for the drug
under the mistaken impression it will
enhance sexual desire and
performance.
Pfizer is now testing the drug to see if it
improves women's sex lives.
nypostonline.com |
