If I had my way, each new patient in our pharmacy would get a little brochure of "Rules Of The Pharmacy" along with their privacy practices notice when they first visit us. The rules would go something like this...
1. Finish your cell phone calls before you get in line. When it's your turn at the counter I have to ask you questions and get information from you. It isn't fair to everyone else waiting in line that it takes three times as long since you aren't giving me your attention. Also, there could be serious consequences if we have inaccurate infomation about your health conditions, medications, etc because you weren't paying attention to what I was asking and didn't correct me. Lastly, you are running the risk that the person on the other end of your conversation will hear something you don't want them to. Don't even try to get me in trouble for violating your "privacy" because the other person now knows you take medicine to treat herpes. Common sense would tell you that they can hear everything we talk about.
2. Notice the sign that says "Please wait here for the next available technician". It is about five feet away from the counter. If you choose to just walk up to the counter before you are called, don't get mad when I tell you to step back to the sign. I still have the last person's prescriptions on the counter in front of me and letting you see that is a violation of HIPPA laws. I will call you up as soon as I've finished processing them.
3. Please call in your refills a few days in advance. This is good for several reasons. We can be certain to have the medicine in stock for you. If your insurance is giving us a hassle, we will have time to work things out. If you are out of refills, we will call your doctor on your behalf to request more. On the other hand, if you walk in with your empty bottle and ask for a refill, you will be out of luck if there are any problems. None of these things I mentioned can usually be solved in 15-20 minutes. So please don't wait until you've taken your last pill to get your refill, give us a few days.
4. There are thousands of prescription plans that we accept at our pharmacy. I can't possibly know the terms of each plan and what is and is not covered. If your insurance says they don't cover a particular medicine or they require prior authorization, please don't ask me why they won't pay and then get mad because I don't know. You can call the customer service number on your insurance card and find out. I'm sorry, but there is not a magic button on this computer that I can press to make the insurance do what you want.
5. Most prescriptions are good for one year from the date that the doctor writes them. This means that you can fill it and get refills until one year from that date. It says this on the side of your bottle. I don't care how much of a fit you throw, I cannot refill a prescription once it is a year old. It is illegal and I am not going to loose my job doing it. Call your doctor and get a new one.
6. Speaking of law. If you want to buy a product containing pseudoephedrine, you must show me identification and pay for it at the pharmacy counter. I don't care how much you whine that it's a pain or that it's violating your privacy, I have to log your name and address along with what you purchased into a book. If you refuse to let me do this, I cannot sell you the product. We are required by federal law to collect this information and I am not going to commit a crime just because you feel inconvenienced.
7. Believe it or not, many of the delays in the pharmacy are things that we have no control over. It's isn't our fault if the doctor doesn't call us back for several days or if your insurance is delaying things. If it's taking too long, how about helping us solve the issue by calling your doctor or your insurance and helping to push things along? You are not the only customer of this pharmacy and I dont' have time to make several calls to your doctor throughout the day trying to get him to follow up. It is not uncommon for a doctor to take a week or more to finally get back to us. This is not our fault.
8. If your insurance is denying your claim, this is also not our fault. We can try our best to work it out, but in the end if they say no there's nothing we can do. You can either pay cash or appeal their decision. It does no good to threaten to go to another pharmacy. It is not us, it is the insurance. Go ahead and take your buisness to another pharmacy, I guarantee you are going to have the same problem there when they try and bill it to your insurance. But you don't believe me, so go for it.
1. Finish your cell phone calls before you get in line. When it's your turn at the counter I have to ask you questions and get information from you. It isn't fair to everyone else waiting in line that it takes three times as long since you aren't giving me your attention. Also, there could be serious consequences if we have inaccurate infomation about your health conditions, medications, etc because you weren't paying attention to what I was asking and didn't correct me. Lastly, you are running the risk that the person on the other end of your conversation will hear something you don't want them to. Don't even try to get me in trouble for violating your "privacy" because the other person now knows you take medicine to treat herpes. Common sense would tell you that they can hear everything we talk about.
2. Notice the sign that says "Please wait here for the next available technician". It is about five feet away from the counter. If you choose to just walk up to the counter before you are called, don't get mad when I tell you to step back to the sign. I still have the last person's prescriptions on the counter in front of me and letting you see that is a violation of HIPPA laws. I will call you up as soon as I've finished processing them.
3. Please call in your refills a few days in advance. This is good for several reasons. We can be certain to have the medicine in stock for you. If your insurance is giving us a hassle, we will have time to work things out. If you are out of refills, we will call your doctor on your behalf to request more. On the other hand, if you walk in with your empty bottle and ask for a refill, you will be out of luck if there are any problems. None of these things I mentioned can usually be solved in 15-20 minutes. So please don't wait until you've taken your last pill to get your refill, give us a few days.
4. There are thousands of prescription plans that we accept at our pharmacy. I can't possibly know the terms of each plan and what is and is not covered. If your insurance says they don't cover a particular medicine or they require prior authorization, please don't ask me why they won't pay and then get mad because I don't know. You can call the customer service number on your insurance card and find out. I'm sorry, but there is not a magic button on this computer that I can press to make the insurance do what you want.
5. Most prescriptions are good for one year from the date that the doctor writes them. This means that you can fill it and get refills until one year from that date. It says this on the side of your bottle. I don't care how much of a fit you throw, I cannot refill a prescription once it is a year old. It is illegal and I am not going to loose my job doing it. Call your doctor and get a new one.
6. Speaking of law. If you want to buy a product containing pseudoephedrine, you must show me identification and pay for it at the pharmacy counter. I don't care how much you whine that it's a pain or that it's violating your privacy, I have to log your name and address along with what you purchased into a book. If you refuse to let me do this, I cannot sell you the product. We are required by federal law to collect this information and I am not going to commit a crime just because you feel inconvenienced.
7. Believe it or not, many of the delays in the pharmacy are things that we have no control over. It's isn't our fault if the doctor doesn't call us back for several days or if your insurance is delaying things. If it's taking too long, how about helping us solve the issue by calling your doctor or your insurance and helping to push things along? You are not the only customer of this pharmacy and I dont' have time to make several calls to your doctor throughout the day trying to get him to follow up. It is not uncommon for a doctor to take a week or more to finally get back to us. This is not our fault.
8. If your insurance is denying your claim, this is also not our fault. We can try our best to work it out, but in the end if they say no there's nothing we can do. You can either pay cash or appeal their decision. It does no good to threaten to go to another pharmacy. It is not us, it is the insurance. Go ahead and take your buisness to another pharmacy, I guarantee you are going to have the same problem there when they try and bill it to your insurance. But you don't believe me, so go for it.
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