[Kitty]

Hi Tarl and welcome to NeuroTalk!

I copied this post from the Medications Forum so you could be welcomed properly.

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Second time i have been shorted on Allegra refill at Walgreens
I am surprised that there are not more complaints. My son takes Allegra (fexofenadine HCL) and has 30 day prescriptions for twice a day. The prescription is clearly labeled for Quantity of 60. I thought the first time this happened that instead of looking at Quantity, the pharmacist must have looked at dosage and overlooked "twice a day".

When I drove to pick-up my son's prescription, the pharmacist reponded
with a now familiar, and inflamatory phrase, "refill too early"! I have become accustomed to difference in depth of 30 and 60 pills in prescription bottles
of similar circumference so that i do not have to double count, but did not realize this until getting home last time. I was infuriated when pharmacist explained my two options:
1) wait 2 days to have prescription filled
2) pay full price (a difference of only $20), wait for Pharmacy manager
to come in (also on Tuesday) to count remaining pills in pharmacy
to determine a shortage and my $20 would be refunded at that time.

My son has asthma, and this is middle of allergy season for him
(he is allergic to tree pollen). I also had no reason to believe that
pharmacy manager would count pills and rule in my favor.
This is second time this has happened in a year.

I do not know what controls are in-place, and what i could do to keep
from happening again. I suppose i could always request a double count,
but pharmacist refered to light-gun. Can they not go back and determine precisely how many pills they counted for last prescription
(whether 30 or 60)?

What controls are in place to prevent pharmacists from counting 30
and charging patients or insurance company for 60?

I find myself in position of proving my innocence and understand that i could
have dropped the pills, sold them, or could even be hoarding them.

Is there any other recourse, but for me to always request recount,
which 80% of time will make me appear to be just being difficult?

Insurance company has allowed us to request "Medical-Loss Override",
and may now be suspicious that shortages could be deliberate. They may
investigate. I just wish that existing controls would prevent from ever happening. It seems that great expense and effort is wasted on controls
that are currently ineffective ;-/

But thank you for providing this forum. Understanding goes a long way
to relieving frustration. I have already added to favorites ;-)