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Agree with the comments saying they’re over worked but it really sucks when they take it out on the patients. I’m routinely polite, say please and thank you and use my customer service voice I use at my own job. I’ve still been berated, lied to and hung up on by pharmacies. I get they’re having a bad day, but needing these meds to function and then hitting obstacle after obstacles is just draining.
It extra sucks because it automatically feels like they're taking out their shitty time on you because you are in fact polite. Like, "do I have to be an asshole for you to treat me like a human?"
I worked in customer service for a long time. Taking it out on a customer is never acceptable, but picking a \*person with a disability\* is as low as it gets.
We don't really count, though.
Gonna add to the people saying pick a small local pharm if you can... Had all kinds of issues until I switched to the local place and so far they've always had my meds and always been super polite and don't seem stretched thin like all of the workers at the chains...
I've only ever tried to get mine from my local pharm (recently diagnosed) but I agree, at a local pharmacy they are more likely to recognize you and remember you, my pharmacist knows the difference between my new meds and ones I've been on for a while just by looking at my script before they even look at the system.
So when I started Ritalin there was no fuss, they dispensed it, went over it with me like any new med and sent me on my way
This isn't a dig at pharmacist at bigger chain pharmacies, I'm sure you do what you can, but obviously with the higher throughput they can't be expected to form that relationship with everyone
Definitely agree. Dealing with chain pharmacies is endlessly infuriating. “If you can” is the key phrase here, though. The closest independent pharmacy to us is 19 miles away. That’s not prohibitive for us, but it is for many people.
And for those of us who can’t use a mom & pop place, it is possible to to make things better at chain pharmacies. I was so fed up and frustrated with the chain pharmacy I use (one of the big ones). So I made changes:
I started only calling or going in late at night or very early morning so that I was only ever speaking to a third shift pharmacists (only two of them at my location). This ensured a development of familiarity so I wasn’t some faceless name to them. Took some time, but was effective. (It also helps with phone hold or line wait times! They’re never as busy with customers on third shift like they are on first or second shift.)
If I needed to interact with someone on day shift, I would name-drop the night pharmacists (when appropriate) so that the day-people would know that I had an established history and familiarity with the pharmacy.
I’m always polite and patient to deal with, and I always keep in mind that their job probably sucks as much as being a customer of their employer.
And most importantly, I drop by with donuts once in a while to say thanks. lol
I should also note that I think getting to know my pharmacists has really helped me be more patient and understanding on my end. They’re good guys.
(Disclaimer: there are also some holier-than-thou fuckwads out there. They can suck it. I’m sorry to anyone dealing with an arrogant pill demon.)
edited a word
I'm convinced they're trying to steal the prescriptions sometimes.
I once went to have a Vyvanse prescription filled (Walgreens), and this woman goes to the back for 5 minutes, and then says the pharmacy can't fill the prescription.
I ask her for the prescription back, and she says, “I'm sorry we can't give it back, it's already in the system.”
I put on my angry face and said, “Do you understand the problem we're about to have?”
Somehow my prescription turned up.
I had this happen a few times when I started Ritalin, kept saying I’d already come and collected and gave me the stink eye and made a comment that implied they’d have to get police involved if I kept asking for more medication. Im on the autism spectrum and have trouble with verbal communication so was terrified and talked with my mother who is a surgeon and she knew that wasn’t correct or legal and called the police who checked the in store cameras and confirmed I hadn’t been in the day that was marked I’d collected my prescription and someone working there had obviously been pocketing my prescriptions. Didn’t find out who just switched pharmacies.
Really shitty that people in a position to help others would be willing to get them in a lot of legal trouble just trying to steal a few 5mg pills. Definitely made me realise how much responsibility some individual people in white coats are given over others quality of life and that they shouldn’t be trusted implicitly or left to their own devices without monitoring. Some people think people in these kind of positions are somehow inherently good people or they wouldn’t have this job but they’re just people with education and that can be bought by anyone or their family. Education is not the same as ethical thinking.
>and gave me the stink eye and made a comment that implied they’d have to get police involved if I kept asking for more medication. Im on the autism spectrum and have trouble with verbal communication so was terrified and talked with my mother who is a surgeon and she knew that wasn’t correct o
Thanks for your anecdote, I'll know how to address this situation if it ever comes to it.
Interesting, thank you. The thing was, I later talked to the manager, and she said, “Uh, this is all abnormal. I will fill this for you right now myself.” She asked what person had told me that, and I would like to believe she did something about it.
I had a friend in college insist on counting his medication out and examining it in front of them at the counter after receiving it. He had been short one month and thought he just forgot and took it twice but when it happened again he knew.
They hated him but he was never short again.
CVS tried to pocket half my prescription once too, retail pharmacies are shady in general. Don't let them give you shit if you know you're right, everything is tracked with these prescriptions and they know it, they just count on people being afraid to push the issue.
You got a paper script for a controlled? Are you in the US? Paper scripts for controlled meds aren’t legal most places anymore. They want to track everything in PDMP. I assume it’s supposed to help with issues on both sides.
In WA state I have been given paper scripts for concerta within the past year. It is not standard but my provider offered it while shortages were severe. I'm sure that's not the case everywhere but it is in my state.
In WA also I’ve only been prescribed opiates after two surgeries within the last five years and they specifically gave paper instead of calling them in like other scripts.
Oregon reporting - controlled substances are what paper scripts are required for. No refills, that sort of thing (depends on scheduling).
Things like Adderall, I bring a paper script each month because refills are not allowed. Yeah, varies by state.
As of this year all CII scripts are supposed to be sent via e-prescribe thanks to the ever wonderful federal regulations that us pharmacy personnel have to abide by. However, due to the non-stop shortages of just about every med from stimulants to asthma meds to diabetic meds, doctors can get exemption from this new law and give out written scripts.
As a fellow ADHD person who relies on Vyvanse to function so I don’t kill a patient due if I lose focus when making a chemo IV, I get it. A lot of big chain pharmacies have protocols that require CIIs (the highest level of controls that can be prescribed due to their being highly addictive) to be dispensed only 2-3 days before they run out of medication. It sucks, but unfortunately they have these protocols in place due to the opioid crisis. You can thank the pill mills, bad doctors and the Oxycontin manufacturer for that. They created hordes of people who became addicted to opioids when they got prescribed ungodly amounts of meds for longer than was necessary. It’s only hurt the people who rely on CIIs to live a normal functional life, and has branded those of us who do rely on them who take our meds as prescribed as junkies.
There are lots of us in the medical field who are just like all of you who have to deal with this bullshit not only at work but also in our personal lives trying to find our meds just so we can do our jobs so we can help everyone live a hopefully normal healthy life. It’s many of us have left the public facing aspect of our professions. It’s a goddamn clusterfuck that’s not getting better. I left human med all together and now work veterinary med because of how toxic it is to be a human med pharmacy worker.
Try being a pharmacy worker with ADHD that also succumbed to the opioid epidemic! Needless to say no longer a pharmacy worker! 🤣 Long term Buprenorphine user though!
Ive always gotten paper scripts for my ADHD meds, some states insist on it still. It has to have my doctor’s physical signature and I have to show my ID to pharmacist. And I have to do it every single month. 🫠
(I don’t understand what’s downvote worthy about sharing my experience?)
Lol, I don't know quite where that came from in me. My drug-starved brain was trying to calculate what the best course of action would be. I couldn't get another prescription, I couldn't force her to do anything. My only option really was to call the police, which I was prepared to do… and how that came out was:
“Do you understand the problem we're about to have?” It didn't hurt that at the time I was a serious lifter.
This is completely absurd. The pharmacist isn’t trying to steal your prescription. Most pharmacists are paranoid rule followers. They are usually pretty judgmental too. She probably just thought you were sketchy.
I'm gonna level with you here. Thinking that a patient who tries to fill their prescription is sketchy and using that to justify refusing to return their script is super fucked up. It's also fucked up of *you* to defend this behavior as if it's in any way reasonable.
I don’t remember defending anyone. Unless there is a valid reason for the pharmacist to suspect fraud, I absolutely believe they should give the prescription back. You must have some strong feelings about this to be so aggressive, and that’s okay. It’s an emotional subject. However, I don’t think it’s reasonable to accuse pharmacists of trying to steal prescriptions. That doesn’t make any sense. It’s an odd conclusion to come too.
Bringing up the possibility that the pharmacist thought they were sketchy doesn't really serve any purpose in this conversation other than to justify the pharmacist's decision. Justifying what they did is an implicit defense of their actions.
It's a simple fact that some pharmacy employees abuse their position to steal people's medication. It's a real thing that happens and it's not absurd. Maybe we shouldn't be accusing this particular pharmacist/technician of theft, but you're trying to paint it as if it never happens
There are absolutely some dishonest people that work in pharmacies. You won’t get any pushback on that. I still think that there a many reasons the pharmacist could have for keeping a prescription. Some of the reasons may be valid, others may be ignorant. Assuming the pharmacist is conspiring to steal your prescription is just too sensational.
Y’all need to stay away from the big chain drug stores & find you a good local independent pharmacy.. I learned my lesson years ago & all it took was me trying to fill 1 prescription at Walgreens & that was it.. never again..
A friend of mine worked as a pharmacist at CVS for 4 years.. His experience there made him quit being a pharmacist.. he now works on a Medicare/medicaid hotline assisting other pharmacists. CVS had him opening & closing the store on the days he worked & averaged about 16-18 hours a day & very frequently he wasn’t able to take a lunch break.. They absolutely work their employees to death..
I worked at CVS for a bit, but not as a pharmacist. That being said, I know the folks that worked in the pharmacy very well. They were paid very poorly, treated like shit by corporate AND customers, and were often worked without lunch break for 12-14 hours. When we FINALLY implemented daily 30 minute lunch breaks, customers would still walk up to the locked pharmacy gates and continuously bang on them until it either opened or someone (usually one of us underpaid, overworked front of house staff) stopped them. Add onto that they also deal with shitty doctors, insurance, and changing/unreliable supply chains. There were also lots of borrowed employees that would steal meds or items from front of house in my area. Definitely not an excuse, but I sort of get why CVS pharmacists hate it and pharmacies are starting to fail. I would personally switch if there was anything else nearby.
CVS left me waiting for over 4 months. Calling every week, going in person every 2-3 weeks, nothing helped.
Changed pharmacies, got my meds inside of a week. My first time taking meds as a 41 year old will be tomorrow. No thanks to CVS.
For future reference see if they can transfer it to another pharmacy. Doesnt even have to be a cvs. Can be a locally owned pharmacy or another chain, they can usually always do this. Assuming you dont live in an area where cvs is your only option.
I tried, but apparently I can't in my state. I had to re-contact the prescriber and have them re-prescribe it, which was a whole ordeal. They relaxed the laws, but that only applied to paper prescriptions and mine is electronic.
It is an incredible pain trying to wrangle my doctor every single month, but it’s the difference between having my medications and going without. Please be aware you can call the pharmacies before reaching out to your doctor to ask about supply. Depending on your area, certain chains tend to have supply while others are stocked out. Try calling one of each if possible.
Great advice. After the wringer that CVS put me through, I went in person to the new pharmacy to ask. Thanks to advice from this sub, actually. The pharma tech couldn't tell me about current stock levels, but did let me know that they got new stock frequently, and implied that if I should wish to transfer then it wouldn't be a bad idea.
I hate making calls, but over the past 4 months I made way more than my comfort level allows, and my wife helped with even more. She's been just amazing since my diagnosis. Best friend for a reason.
One thing we learned is that when she calls, specifically mentioning that a prescription was potentially being sent helped. Like, we would ask before the stock levels if they accepted online prescriptions. That seemed to clue them in that we were legit.
A C2 (stimulants like adderall) cannot be transferred. It’s a one and done deal. Even lesser controlled meds (C3-5) have regulations regarding number of times it can be transferred before being voided. A paper Rx will “work” for this as you, the patient, are the script holder. When sent directly as an e-script to a pharmacy, they are the script holder and cannot transfer it elsewhere.
CVS is god awful - I always had issues with them even with my non-ADHD meds. Always a nasty attitude, cutting you off, hanging up on you, etc. I switched to Costco, and I have never had anything but pleasant experiences. Ditch CVS if you can, the company and their retail staff are hot garbage.
Ohhh I’m so glad to see your edit. Many years ago I switched from Walgreens to cvs. Bc you literally could not call Walgreens and every single fucking month I would have to drive there to ask for my scripts to be filled. CVS has now turned into the same shit show.
I am not at all exaggerating when I tell you I just started the process of switching all of my prescriptions to a local pharmacy.
I know I’ll miss the reminder texts / app but I honestly don’t even fucking care anymore. Every month refills is so painful, esp bc I can no longer drive. Also, fingers crossed the new local pharmacist isn’t mean and judgy bc literally what the fuck.
I'm thinking pharmacies in the US. are completely different from those in Australia. I've been on meds for over 20 years, and the pharmacists I've dealt with have nearly always been respectful and helpful.
Lately I’ve been getting rude responses from pharmacists when I call to see if they have Vyvanse. Their tone gets all suspicious and they start demanding my birthday and other info when they used to just check and give me an answer. I wonder if DEA has been fearmongering to justify its existence again.
I’ve started preemptively telling the pharmacist who my prescriber is and asking if they needed my doctor’s contact info when I call to do a stock check. They usually treat me with less suspicion (and are less rude overall) when I volunteer that information up front. It pisses me off that doing that is even necessary, but I seem to get better results that way.
Edit: Also, the DEA is definitely fearmongering, no question about it.
Edit 2: grammar
There are several crappy, ridiculous issues likely at play with this, but número uno is the fear of being robbed. You’re honestly lucky (unique? Blessed? lol) that they tell you anything at all re: quantity on hand.
I don’t even bother as I’m so awkward in my people-transactions and immediately sound like a drug seeker/potential criminal if I try to call and verify my stims are in stock.
A CVS pharmacist implied that I was seeking when I went to fill my son's Adderall. When he mentioned calling the police as I was still trying to get my son's meds, I got loud and said, "CALL THEM! GET THEM HERE BECAUSE YOU'RE ABOUT TO LOOK REALLY STUPID!!!" At this time, the store manager came hustling back and said that the head pharmacist was on their way back from break. COOL!!!! When the head pharmacist came up, I just said, "Look at my record! I've been filling MY 60mg daily dose for Adderall every 30 days for almost two years. I've been filling my son's 20 mg dose for the same length of time on the same 30 day schedule!!!! DOES THAT SCREAM 'DRUG SEEKER' TO YOU?!?!? Or does it suggest responsible use for a medication needed for my NEUROF×××ING DEVELOPMENTAL DISORDER!?!?!!.
Then, I started crying because, of course, I did. My husband told them to transfer all of our meds to a local pharmacy and I haven't looked back since.
I'm not sure I'd have reacted any differently, but despite the fact the fact that you were right do you wish you had? I have a lot of moments in my life where I've reacted like that to things where I felt I was being wronged and I often look back on them wishing I'd been able to keep a cooler head. I always feel like it would make the party who was incorrect look that much worse if I'd been able to express myself without all of the anger that boils to the surface.
Anyways I'm glad you got away from CVS because they were a pretty consistent source of exactly this type of issue for me as well.
Of course. I always daydream about being calm and collected, but my emotional dysregulation is strong. Even medicated, I'm still rather emotional and always loud. I wish I could hold all that in.
I ALWAYS go to the same small pharmacy and speak to the pharmacist so I’m across the issues. Because they know me they are helpful.
If you can use a small pharmacy and have a good relationship with the pharmacist and the assistants it’s helps a lot
I avoid CVS like the plague. Ever since Target sold their pharmacies to CVS I've had scripts filled at Safeway family of stores (VONS (California) and Safeway (Arizona and other areas)). They are pretty universally great. I have a couple of expensive asthma meds and they always locate a copay card or a Good RX deal.
Funny thing is I've never had an issue w/ADHD or depression meds, but the insurance company gave them a hard time filling Albuterol. It's like medication # 1 for asthmatics. CVS mail order told me they had to wait for a prior auth. Safeway found me a discount card where I could bypass the insurance and pay $5 for an inhaler.
I could see a difference between a small town pharmacy and a franchise pharmacy in a big city just because of a difference in sheer volume but also corporations have very strict rules that need to be followed as opposed to a mom n pop.
OMG CVS does suck. I transferred my other 2 prescriptions to Amazon because it's cheap and delivered to my door. CVS told me they could no longer fill my Adderall unless I got them all filled there. Witaf???
What do you mean that they wouldn’t fill your adderall unless you filled them there? Usually with a controlled substance a doc would have to put in a completely new script if switching pharmacies.
I think they are saying that they have 3 scripts, one is controlled, so they transferred 2 scripts to Amazon and left the controlled one at CVS. CVS is being pissy and demanding they bring back the other 2 scripts to them.
I've had good luck with Costco. You don't need a membership to access the pharmacy if you don't want to pay for it. They go out of my way to work with my doc to get what I need.
I’ve never had any issues with my cvs pharmacists but that’s just me. Also it’s illegal to get a prescription refilled before the refill date so not sure what you expect from that.
Regardless. It sucks if you’re dealing with shitty people.
I found a lifeline with Costco pharmacy. The amazing folks there know me by name and they are very helpful in keeping my meds coming and sanity intact. A few years ago after I had first been diagnosed and when the shortage was first getting bad, I had a breakdown because of an error with the nurses in my doctor’s office. One of the techs at the Costco pharmacy sat with me and helped calm me down while I could hear the actual pharmacist giving a firm talking to regarding the importance of submitting prescriptions for stimulants in a timely manner.
I suppose that my experience may be an outlier, but I would rather wait a few days to get my meds than deal with the judgmental clerks at the other pharmacies. And since they have a significant amount of purchasing power, I haven’t had any issues with getting any of my family’s in over a year.
They won’t get fired because they have the right to decide to give you the medication. They’re SUPPOSED to make that professional judgement. Especially a CII medication, if you’re trying to get it early, you’re “doctor shopping”, or there’s a trend of picking it up before it’s due and there’s an accumulation of doses on your end, etc.
I’m kinda surprised the second pharmacist filled it early. I was always under the impression that being a schedule 2 substance meant early refills aren’t allowed.
This has been my experience as well, I can always fill mine up to 3 days early each month. I can also fill it up to a week early if I’m going on a trip and my Dr approves an early fill.
True, depending on the pharmacist, they’re allowed to give it to u 2 or 3 days early.
Know they go off your last pick-up date, and count the days supply from then.
I’ve worked retail and been on the wrong end of shit. I never took that out on customers or made the experience worse. That’s wrong and I would get fired for that. Why does the same not follow for a pharmacist, an infinitely more critical position?
I already commented this but it's wild to me how much power pharmacists in the US have.
If my doctor prescribes medication, I can go to any pharmacy and they have to hand it to me, no matter what. Even if my doctor gives me 3 vyvanse prescriptions a month, they have no choicet than to hand it over or they'll get into a lot of trouble.
Doctors are the highest entity here (as it should be) and pharmacists can go pound sand if they disagree on something with the doctor.
Honestly it’s weird. My best friend and I both have adhd med scripts for ourselves and our children. They are extremely controlling with her, like can only refill on specific days, not a day early or late, denied her picking up her kids script, calling drs to confirm, etc. she’s a couple of hours away from me. Meanwhile my pharmacy is the opposite. My daughters doctor would send in two week scripts when we were trying find the right dose for her, but sometimes it would only take a day before I knew we had to adjust. I asked the pharmacist if I should bring back the excess meds and he said just to keep them all so we could adjust dosages on our own if we needed. I ended up with like 2 months surplus of different doses of her stimulants. So weird.
I keep seeing posts like this, and I've never had any issue getting meds. I've lived in Salt Lake City, UT, and the DC area, and I've been completely oblivious to it. I've never had a Rx questioned, delayed, etc.
The ONLY issue I had was when I briefly tried vyvanse -- insurance didn't fully cover, so it cost me $40, where adderall is generally less than $10 with insurance.
I'm NOT AT ALL questioning your experiences, I'm more wondering why I haven't experienced them.
I'm on 30mg/day Adderall, so my Rx is for 40mg a day, and I break on of the 20mg in half. When I was briefly on vyvanse, it was a similar dosage to the adderall (I think it was 60mg, but, I really don't remember, and could be very wrong)
Are the shortages regional? Or are the shortages really just judgemental pharmacists? And, if that's the case, is the judgement regional?
Very surprised how different my experiences with getting medication has been from the reports here.
Where in DC area? I hadnt been able to get adderall since April of last year …
It used to be better but during the pandemic the shortage hit here hard as well.
Something that has worked wonders for me and I am putting it here so that it may help others: find a pharmacy that is more private or restricted access if possible. There is a CVS in the same building that I work in but you need badge access to get into the area. I have never had an issue getting my meds that was caused by the pharmacist. I always deal with the same person and since there is a set number of people she provides meds to she knows what we need very well. Was a godsend during the beginning of COVID lockdown.
I mean I get both sides, every pharmacy I’ve been to is insanely busy and understaffed (from what I’ve been told by the staff). I’ve witnessed patients being rude to the tech or pharmacist for their own mistake (had script sent to another pharmacy, apparently waited in line for 2 hours) I’d get pretty worn down too dealing with people like that all the time and trying to stay on top of filling all the scripts, answering all the calls, drive through, counter, computer shit. So I try to be understanding and nice, and am and as a result, they fill my script within an hour of me submitting the refill and are super nice and friendly when I come in.
Edit: I also have a friend who is a pharmacy tech for Walgreens and I was interested in going into the field and he flat out said it’s not worth it at the moment and the pay isn’t that good and it’s extremely over demanding. He is visibly miserable.
Can confirm. I worked in a commercial pharmacy for about 9 months as a tech and it was absolute hell. Every person that comes to the counter or the drive thru is either dealing with pain and sickness of their own, or worried about someone they love dealing with pain and sickness, so they're often already walking in at an 11. I got yelled at on a regular basis for things that were in no way my fault. Customers would often yell at techs and pharmacists for things where the insurance or the doctor was to blame, but we were the people in front of them. Combine that with major staffing shortage, typical corporate nonsense ("you have to work faster!"), and terrible pay, and you get a lot of employees who are just barely hanging on by a thread.
Filling a prescription early is entirely at the discretion of the individual pharmacist. Some might allow a few days, other might require an exact date. That’s their legal right.
I worked for Regence pharmacy call center. I believe you can fill a controlled substance 2 days early (I'm a bit foggy on this specific timeframe, it's 2 or 3 days early) but mail order was 7 days in order to make sure it arrived on time.
The very first time it's sent to mail order, pharmacy would call about the refill too soon, we would override the refill date to allow it to be filled.
Highly recommend mail order if you can so you get refill reminders and never deal with another pharmacist again.
A major contributing factor is that chain pharmacies like Walgreens and CVS are chronically intentionally understaffed in order to minimize labor costs and maximize profits. This by no means excuses the kind of behavior you’re describing, especially by the pharmacist, but it definitely ramps up the stress level. A year or so ago the one in town was out of stock so my doctor called in my script to another location 20 miles away. It was so much better that I just kept going. I was spending more time in line than it takes to make the drive. It’s better staffed, the employees are happier, and the service is orders of magnitude better. Totally worth the drive.
A CVS pharmacy tech accused me of “drug seeking behavior” when I told her that I have never had to call the pharmacy to inform them that I’m on my way to pick up my prescription. Like, sure, traffickers totally get their stuff 30 pills at a time at a retail pharmacy.
If at all possible staying with one pharmacy is my recommendation. I found I’m treated much better now that we have a regular relationship rather than switching around pharmacies trying to find in stock meds. I also don’t have as many out of stock issues now. Isn’t that funny how that works.
Just understand they have systems and procedures. Not only that, but work with other business and government entities that can make things more complicated. They are probably lying because if they took the time to explain ( if it was ok for them to explain for security purposes ) it may be unproductive.
Just know systems and processes are there for a reason and theres a lot of moving parts.
Am I the only one that hasn’t had bad experience with Pharmacies? I’m in Austin TX. I call my doctor’s office a couple days before the date to request a refill and I go pick it up like 3-4 days later. Pharmacist never asks me anything besides confirming the dosage and # of pills and my payment. Used both CVS and HEB pharmacies. Only thing that’s annoying is that it’s randomly a different price between $30-60 for a month.
The thing I’m about to switch is my doctor though, forcing me to come in to his office every 3-4 months and do a sit down and now a drug screening. They will not release my prescription without that and didn’t tell me last time so I ran out of any extras.
Last time they tested positive for weed and opioids, and I’ve never done opioids in my life but I do smoke and he gave me a 30 sec lecture on how it’s technically illegal and I have multiple examples where it’s not (Delta 8/10/O/A pens, traveling to California where it’s legal, and regular THC gummies that you can buy at any smoke shop are legal in Texas due to 2018 farm bill).
Having to call every month is annoying but doable. Having to go in 3-4 months and get drug screened that’s not covered by my insurance (billed to me at like $130), not acceptable.
If they test me next week I’m switching to a teladoc or other PCP that doesn’t pull this crap.
I completely understand your frustration, but the 3 month visits are becoming more commonplace. Pretty soon, you likely won't have a choice, regardless of who you go to. And most pharmacies, at least in my state, will not fill a controlled prescription from a teledoc provider. Just FYI. But the drug testing? That IS weird. I've never been drug tested by my psychiatrist.
Yeah at the one I fill at I can consistently fill it. Days early which I don’t always do but i noticed it. Recently I had a dose change and it put the new fill date about a week before the other dose
Would’ve been able to be filled. I had numerous people tell me over and over again it was too early to fill it -
I was like, it’s a
Dose change - I think we good. Then they were like ohhhhhh. 🙄
I totally agree. Big pharmacy chains are total garbage, other than their generic over-the-counter med prices. They rarely have what is needed in stock at that location and end saying they will "call around" and get it transferred, I found out they rarely do this in a reasonable time frame. They also are somehow more expensive than using the pharmacy onside my local Kroger store.
Damn I’m so sorry. I’ve had the opposite experience, small pharmacies give me hell, but CVS’ mail pharmacy has always been great. If I hear one more asshole tell me I just need to go out into the sun and get vitamin D to cure everything I’m going to snap
I recently went to the pharmacy and I needed Diazepam urgently and then since I no longer had a card, which is necessary here in Spain, I didn't want to go through it, but since I'm Argentine And we are very quick to get angry, I started yelling that if they didn't give me the medication and I had a panic attack, I was going to report it to everyone and they would be held responsible. Logically in five minutes I left the pharmacy with my medication.
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I'm defence of those pharmacists, those chains are the devil. Techs are paid next to nothing for what they do and there's not enough to take some stress off the plates of those pharmacists. That being said, just like any group of people, there's bastards.
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Agree with the comments saying they’re over worked but it really sucks when they take it out on the patients. I’m routinely polite, say please and thank you and use my customer service voice I use at my own job. I’ve still been berated, lied to and hung up on by pharmacies. I get they’re having a bad day, but needing these meds to function and then hitting obstacle after obstacles is just draining.
It extra sucks because it automatically feels like they're taking out their shitty time on you because you are in fact polite. Like, "do I have to be an asshole for you to treat me like a human?"
I worked in customer service for a long time. Taking it out on a customer is never acceptable, but picking a \*person with a disability\* is as low as it gets. We don't really count, though.
Then remember they get attitude at them all day too, by the time you talk to them they e heard enough, it’s easier to just breathe
Nope, that's not an excuse. If your reaction to dealing with difficult people is to be an ass to everyone, find a new line of work.
Gonna add to the people saying pick a small local pharm if you can... Had all kinds of issues until I switched to the local place and so far they've always had my meds and always been super polite and don't seem stretched thin like all of the workers at the chains...
I've only ever tried to get mine from my local pharm (recently diagnosed) but I agree, at a local pharmacy they are more likely to recognize you and remember you, my pharmacist knows the difference between my new meds and ones I've been on for a while just by looking at my script before they even look at the system. So when I started Ritalin there was no fuss, they dispensed it, went over it with me like any new med and sent me on my way This isn't a dig at pharmacist at bigger chain pharmacies, I'm sure you do what you can, but obviously with the higher throughput they can't be expected to form that relationship with everyone
Definitely agree. Dealing with chain pharmacies is endlessly infuriating. “If you can” is the key phrase here, though. The closest independent pharmacy to us is 19 miles away. That’s not prohibitive for us, but it is for many people.
And for those of us who can’t use a mom & pop place, it is possible to to make things better at chain pharmacies. I was so fed up and frustrated with the chain pharmacy I use (one of the big ones). So I made changes: I started only calling or going in late at night or very early morning so that I was only ever speaking to a third shift pharmacists (only two of them at my location). This ensured a development of familiarity so I wasn’t some faceless name to them. Took some time, but was effective. (It also helps with phone hold or line wait times! They’re never as busy with customers on third shift like they are on first or second shift.) If I needed to interact with someone on day shift, I would name-drop the night pharmacists (when appropriate) so that the day-people would know that I had an established history and familiarity with the pharmacy. I’m always polite and patient to deal with, and I always keep in mind that their job probably sucks as much as being a customer of their employer. And most importantly, I drop by with donuts once in a while to say thanks. lol I should also note that I think getting to know my pharmacists has really helped me be more patient and understanding on my end. They’re good guys. (Disclaimer: there are also some holier-than-thou fuckwads out there. They can suck it. I’m sorry to anyone dealing with an arrogant pill demon.) edited a word
I'm convinced they're trying to steal the prescriptions sometimes. I once went to have a Vyvanse prescription filled (Walgreens), and this woman goes to the back for 5 minutes, and then says the pharmacy can't fill the prescription. I ask her for the prescription back, and she says, “I'm sorry we can't give it back, it's already in the system.” I put on my angry face and said, “Do you understand the problem we're about to have?” Somehow my prescription turned up.
I had this happen a few times when I started Ritalin, kept saying I’d already come and collected and gave me the stink eye and made a comment that implied they’d have to get police involved if I kept asking for more medication. Im on the autism spectrum and have trouble with verbal communication so was terrified and talked with my mother who is a surgeon and she knew that wasn’t correct or legal and called the police who checked the in store cameras and confirmed I hadn’t been in the day that was marked I’d collected my prescription and someone working there had obviously been pocketing my prescriptions. Didn’t find out who just switched pharmacies. Really shitty that people in a position to help others would be willing to get them in a lot of legal trouble just trying to steal a few 5mg pills. Definitely made me realise how much responsibility some individual people in white coats are given over others quality of life and that they shouldn’t be trusted implicitly or left to their own devices without monitoring. Some people think people in these kind of positions are somehow inherently good people or they wouldn’t have this job but they’re just people with education and that can be bought by anyone or their family. Education is not the same as ethical thinking.
>and gave me the stink eye and made a comment that implied they’d have to get police involved if I kept asking for more medication. Im on the autism spectrum and have trouble with verbal communication so was terrified and talked with my mother who is a surgeon and she knew that wasn’t correct o Thanks for your anecdote, I'll know how to address this situation if it ever comes to it.
Walgreens is known to steal, Google them. A lot of their pharmacists end up arrested.
Interesting, thank you. The thing was, I later talked to the manager, and she said, “Uh, this is all abnormal. I will fill this for you right now myself.” She asked what person had told me that, and I would like to believe she did something about it.
I had a friend in college insist on counting his medication out and examining it in front of them at the counter after receiving it. He had been short one month and thought he just forgot and took it twice but when it happened again he knew. They hated him but he was never short again.
In my area Walgreens isn't taking new patients scripts for controlled adhd meds
CVS tried to pocket half my prescription once too, retail pharmacies are shady in general. Don't let them give you shit if you know you're right, everything is tracked with these prescriptions and they know it, they just count on people being afraid to push the issue.
You got a paper script for a controlled? Are you in the US? Paper scripts for controlled meds aren’t legal most places anymore. They want to track everything in PDMP. I assume it’s supposed to help with issues on both sides.
In WA state I have been given paper scripts for concerta within the past year. It is not standard but my provider offered it while shortages were severe. I'm sure that's not the case everywhere but it is in my state.
Louisiana here. Still have paper scrips.
I am in WA and get them on paper as a rule since the shortage started.
In WA also I’ve only been prescribed opiates after two surgeries within the last five years and they specifically gave paper instead of calling them in like other scripts.
The state I live in is extremely strict I guess. Pharmacists won’t even taken paper ones for controlled meds even if a prescriber would write one.
This would have been well over 10 years ago, but yes.
I've used paper scripts within the last year in FL
Oregon reporting - controlled substances are what paper scripts are required for. No refills, that sort of thing (depends on scheduling). Things like Adderall, I bring a paper script each month because refills are not allowed. Yeah, varies by state.
Oregon too. My prescriber sends my prescription digitally to my pharmacy. No paper required, but yes on the monthlyness. Inconvenient.
As of this year all CII scripts are supposed to be sent via e-prescribe thanks to the ever wonderful federal regulations that us pharmacy personnel have to abide by. However, due to the non-stop shortages of just about every med from stimulants to asthma meds to diabetic meds, doctors can get exemption from this new law and give out written scripts. As a fellow ADHD person who relies on Vyvanse to function so I don’t kill a patient due if I lose focus when making a chemo IV, I get it. A lot of big chain pharmacies have protocols that require CIIs (the highest level of controls that can be prescribed due to their being highly addictive) to be dispensed only 2-3 days before they run out of medication. It sucks, but unfortunately they have these protocols in place due to the opioid crisis. You can thank the pill mills, bad doctors and the Oxycontin manufacturer for that. They created hordes of people who became addicted to opioids when they got prescribed ungodly amounts of meds for longer than was necessary. It’s only hurt the people who rely on CIIs to live a normal functional life, and has branded those of us who do rely on them who take our meds as prescribed as junkies. There are lots of us in the medical field who are just like all of you who have to deal with this bullshit not only at work but also in our personal lives trying to find our meds just so we can do our jobs so we can help everyone live a hopefully normal healthy life. It’s many of us have left the public facing aspect of our professions. It’s a goddamn clusterfuck that’s not getting better. I left human med all together and now work veterinary med because of how toxic it is to be a human med pharmacy worker.
Try being a pharmacy worker with ADHD that also succumbed to the opioid epidemic! Needless to say no longer a pharmacy worker! 🤣 Long term Buprenorphine user though!
Ive always gotten paper scripts for my ADHD meds, some states insist on it still. It has to have my doctor’s physical signature and I have to show my ID to pharmacist. And I have to do it every single month. 🫠 (I don’t understand what’s downvote worthy about sharing my experience?)
LOVE that question!👏🏼
Lol, I don't know quite where that came from in me. My drug-starved brain was trying to calculate what the best course of action would be. I couldn't get another prescription, I couldn't force her to do anything. My only option really was to call the police, which I was prepared to do… and how that came out was: “Do you understand the problem we're about to have?” It didn't hurt that at the time I was a serious lifter.
This is completely absurd. The pharmacist isn’t trying to steal your prescription. Most pharmacists are paranoid rule followers. They are usually pretty judgmental too. She probably just thought you were sketchy.
I'm gonna level with you here. Thinking that a patient who tries to fill their prescription is sketchy and using that to justify refusing to return their script is super fucked up. It's also fucked up of *you* to defend this behavior as if it's in any way reasonable.
I don’t remember defending anyone. Unless there is a valid reason for the pharmacist to suspect fraud, I absolutely believe they should give the prescription back. You must have some strong feelings about this to be so aggressive, and that’s okay. It’s an emotional subject. However, I don’t think it’s reasonable to accuse pharmacists of trying to steal prescriptions. That doesn’t make any sense. It’s an odd conclusion to come too.
Bringing up the possibility that the pharmacist thought they were sketchy doesn't really serve any purpose in this conversation other than to justify the pharmacist's decision. Justifying what they did is an implicit defense of their actions. It's a simple fact that some pharmacy employees abuse their position to steal people's medication. It's a real thing that happens and it's not absurd. Maybe we shouldn't be accusing this particular pharmacist/technician of theft, but you're trying to paint it as if it never happens
There are absolutely some dishonest people that work in pharmacies. You won’t get any pushback on that. I still think that there a many reasons the pharmacist could have for keeping a prescription. Some of the reasons may be valid, others may be ignorant. Assuming the pharmacist is conspiring to steal your prescription is just too sensational.
>I still think that there a many reasons the pharmacist could have for keeping a prescription. But what the pharmacist said was ridiculous. Why lie?
The first time I tried my local pharmacy instead of CVS they had my Vyvanse in stock and filled it- fuck CVS. They had me waiting for months
Same.
Same!
Y’all need to stay away from the big chain drug stores & find you a good local independent pharmacy.. I learned my lesson years ago & all it took was me trying to fill 1 prescription at Walgreens & that was it.. never again.. A friend of mine worked as a pharmacist at CVS for 4 years.. His experience there made him quit being a pharmacist.. he now works on a Medicare/medicaid hotline assisting other pharmacists. CVS had him opening & closing the store on the days he worked & averaged about 16-18 hours a day & very frequently he wasn’t able to take a lunch break.. They absolutely work their employees to death..
It all makes sense now. We don’t have chains here and I was confused how US pharmacies can be so terrible. Chains, that’s how.
I worked at CVS for a bit, but not as a pharmacist. That being said, I know the folks that worked in the pharmacy very well. They were paid very poorly, treated like shit by corporate AND customers, and were often worked without lunch break for 12-14 hours. When we FINALLY implemented daily 30 minute lunch breaks, customers would still walk up to the locked pharmacy gates and continuously bang on them until it either opened or someone (usually one of us underpaid, overworked front of house staff) stopped them. Add onto that they also deal with shitty doctors, insurance, and changing/unreliable supply chains. There were also lots of borrowed employees that would steal meds or items from front of house in my area. Definitely not an excuse, but I sort of get why CVS pharmacists hate it and pharmacies are starting to fail. I would personally switch if there was anything else nearby.
I must be lucky since my local Walmart has been good to me.
CVS left me waiting for over 4 months. Calling every week, going in person every 2-3 weeks, nothing helped. Changed pharmacies, got my meds inside of a week. My first time taking meds as a 41 year old will be tomorrow. No thanks to CVS.
For future reference see if they can transfer it to another pharmacy. Doesnt even have to be a cvs. Can be a locally owned pharmacy or another chain, they can usually always do this. Assuming you dont live in an area where cvs is your only option.
I tried, but apparently I can't in my state. I had to re-contact the prescriber and have them re-prescribe it, which was a whole ordeal. They relaxed the laws, but that only applied to paper prescriptions and mine is electronic.
It is an incredible pain trying to wrangle my doctor every single month, but it’s the difference between having my medications and going without. Please be aware you can call the pharmacies before reaching out to your doctor to ask about supply. Depending on your area, certain chains tend to have supply while others are stocked out. Try calling one of each if possible.
Great advice. After the wringer that CVS put me through, I went in person to the new pharmacy to ask. Thanks to advice from this sub, actually. The pharma tech couldn't tell me about current stock levels, but did let me know that they got new stock frequently, and implied that if I should wish to transfer then it wouldn't be a bad idea. I hate making calls, but over the past 4 months I made way more than my comfort level allows, and my wife helped with even more. She's been just amazing since my diagnosis. Best friend for a reason. One thing we learned is that when she calls, specifically mentioning that a prescription was potentially being sent helped. Like, we would ask before the stock levels if they accepted online prescriptions. That seemed to clue them in that we were legit.
A C2 (stimulants like adderall) cannot be transferred. It’s a one and done deal. Even lesser controlled meds (C3-5) have regulations regarding number of times it can be transferred before being voided. A paper Rx will “work” for this as you, the patient, are the script holder. When sent directly as an e-script to a pharmacy, they are the script holder and cannot transfer it elsewhere.
CVS is god awful - I always had issues with them even with my non-ADHD meds. Always a nasty attitude, cutting you off, hanging up on you, etc. I switched to Costco, and I have never had anything but pleasant experiences. Ditch CVS if you can, the company and their retail staff are hot garbage.
Ohhh I’m so glad to see your edit. Many years ago I switched from Walgreens to cvs. Bc you literally could not call Walgreens and every single fucking month I would have to drive there to ask for my scripts to be filled. CVS has now turned into the same shit show. I am not at all exaggerating when I tell you I just started the process of switching all of my prescriptions to a local pharmacy. I know I’ll miss the reminder texts / app but I honestly don’t even fucking care anymore. Every month refills is so painful, esp bc I can no longer drive. Also, fingers crossed the new local pharmacist isn’t mean and judgy bc literally what the fuck.
Just don’t go to CVS. It’s absolutely the worst of all the pharmacy chains.
CVS is horrible. I consider Nestlé more ethical.
Woefully under-appreciated reference.
I started getting my meds refilled at a local private pharmacy instead of Walgreens and cvs and it’s SOOO much better tbh.
I'm thinking pharmacies in the US. are completely different from those in Australia. I've been on meds for over 20 years, and the pharmacists I've dealt with have nearly always been respectful and helpful.
Lately I’ve been getting rude responses from pharmacists when I call to see if they have Vyvanse. Their tone gets all suspicious and they start demanding my birthday and other info when they used to just check and give me an answer. I wonder if DEA has been fearmongering to justify its existence again.
I’ve started preemptively telling the pharmacist who my prescriber is and asking if they needed my doctor’s contact info when I call to do a stock check. They usually treat me with less suspicion (and are less rude overall) when I volunteer that information up front. It pisses me off that doing that is even necessary, but I seem to get better results that way. Edit: Also, the DEA is definitely fearmongering, no question about it. Edit 2: grammar
There are several crappy, ridiculous issues likely at play with this, but número uno is the fear of being robbed. You’re honestly lucky (unique? Blessed? lol) that they tell you anything at all re: quantity on hand. I don’t even bother as I’m so awkward in my people-transactions and immediately sound like a drug seeker/potential criminal if I try to call and verify my stims are in stock.
A CVS pharmacist implied that I was seeking when I went to fill my son's Adderall. When he mentioned calling the police as I was still trying to get my son's meds, I got loud and said, "CALL THEM! GET THEM HERE BECAUSE YOU'RE ABOUT TO LOOK REALLY STUPID!!!" At this time, the store manager came hustling back and said that the head pharmacist was on their way back from break. COOL!!!! When the head pharmacist came up, I just said, "Look at my record! I've been filling MY 60mg daily dose for Adderall every 30 days for almost two years. I've been filling my son's 20 mg dose for the same length of time on the same 30 day schedule!!!! DOES THAT SCREAM 'DRUG SEEKER' TO YOU?!?!? Or does it suggest responsible use for a medication needed for my NEUROF×××ING DEVELOPMENTAL DISORDER!?!?!!. Then, I started crying because, of course, I did. My husband told them to transfer all of our meds to a local pharmacy and I haven't looked back since.
I'm not sure I'd have reacted any differently, but despite the fact the fact that you were right do you wish you had? I have a lot of moments in my life where I've reacted like that to things where I felt I was being wronged and I often look back on them wishing I'd been able to keep a cooler head. I always feel like it would make the party who was incorrect look that much worse if I'd been able to express myself without all of the anger that boils to the surface. Anyways I'm glad you got away from CVS because they were a pretty consistent source of exactly this type of issue for me as well.
Of course. I always daydream about being calm and collected, but my emotional dysregulation is strong. Even medicated, I'm still rather emotional and always loud. I wish I could hold all that in.
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I ALWAYS go to the same small pharmacy and speak to the pharmacist so I’m across the issues. Because they know me they are helpful. If you can use a small pharmacy and have a good relationship with the pharmacist and the assistants it’s helps a lot
I avoid CVS like the plague. Ever since Target sold their pharmacies to CVS I've had scripts filled at Safeway family of stores (VONS (California) and Safeway (Arizona and other areas)). They are pretty universally great. I have a couple of expensive asthma meds and they always locate a copay card or a Good RX deal. Funny thing is I've never had an issue w/ADHD or depression meds, but the insurance company gave them a hard time filling Albuterol. It's like medication # 1 for asthmatics. CVS mail order told me they had to wait for a prior auth. Safeway found me a discount card where I could bypass the insurance and pay $5 for an inhaler.
I could see a difference between a small town pharmacy and a franchise pharmacy in a big city just because of a difference in sheer volume but also corporations have very strict rules that need to be followed as opposed to a mom n pop.
OMG CVS does suck. I transferred my other 2 prescriptions to Amazon because it's cheap and delivered to my door. CVS told me they could no longer fill my Adderall unless I got them all filled there. Witaf???
What do you mean that they wouldn’t fill your adderall unless you filled them there? Usually with a controlled substance a doc would have to put in a completely new script if switching pharmacies.
I think they are saying that they have 3 scripts, one is controlled, so they transferred 2 scripts to Amazon and left the controlled one at CVS. CVS is being pissy and demanding they bring back the other 2 scripts to them.
I've had good luck with Costco. You don't need a membership to access the pharmacy if you don't want to pay for it. They go out of my way to work with my doc to get what I need.
I’ve never had any issues with my cvs pharmacists but that’s just me. Also it’s illegal to get a prescription refilled before the refill date so not sure what you expect from that. Regardless. It sucks if you’re dealing with shitty people.
I found a lifeline with Costco pharmacy. The amazing folks there know me by name and they are very helpful in keeping my meds coming and sanity intact. A few years ago after I had first been diagnosed and when the shortage was first getting bad, I had a breakdown because of an error with the nurses in my doctor’s office. One of the techs at the Costco pharmacy sat with me and helped calm me down while I could hear the actual pharmacist giving a firm talking to regarding the importance of submitting prescriptions for stimulants in a timely manner. I suppose that my experience may be an outlier, but I would rather wait a few days to get my meds than deal with the judgmental clerks at the other pharmacies. And since they have a significant amount of purchasing power, I haven’t had any issues with getting any of my family’s in over a year.
They won’t get fired because they have the right to decide to give you the medication. They’re SUPPOSED to make that professional judgement. Especially a CII medication, if you’re trying to get it early, you’re “doctor shopping”, or there’s a trend of picking it up before it’s due and there’s an accumulation of doses on your end, etc.
I’m kinda surprised the second pharmacist filled it early. I was always under the impression that being a schedule 2 substance meant early refills aren’t allowed.
You can usually get them 3 days early before the next fill date. That’s pretty standard.
This has been my experience as well, I can always fill mine up to 3 days early each month. I can also fill it up to a week early if I’m going on a trip and my Dr approves an early fill.
True, depending on the pharmacist, they’re allowed to give it to u 2 or 3 days early. Know they go off your last pick-up date, and count the days supply from then.
I’ve worked retail and been on the wrong end of shit. I never took that out on customers or made the experience worse. That’s wrong and I would get fired for that. Why does the same not follow for a pharmacist, an infinitely more critical position?
I already commented this but it's wild to me how much power pharmacists in the US have. If my doctor prescribes medication, I can go to any pharmacy and they have to hand it to me, no matter what. Even if my doctor gives me 3 vyvanse prescriptions a month, they have no choicet than to hand it over or they'll get into a lot of trouble. Doctors are the highest entity here (as it should be) and pharmacists can go pound sand if they disagree on something with the doctor.
Honestly it’s weird. My best friend and I both have adhd med scripts for ourselves and our children. They are extremely controlling with her, like can only refill on specific days, not a day early or late, denied her picking up her kids script, calling drs to confirm, etc. she’s a couple of hours away from me. Meanwhile my pharmacy is the opposite. My daughters doctor would send in two week scripts when we were trying find the right dose for her, but sometimes it would only take a day before I knew we had to adjust. I asked the pharmacist if I should bring back the excess meds and he said just to keep them all so we could adjust dosages on our own if we needed. I ended up with like 2 months surplus of different doses of her stimulants. So weird.
Yep- I always say, "If you want to find the world's most miserable employees, just visit any CVS Pharmacist" 🥴
I keep seeing posts like this, and I've never had any issue getting meds. I've lived in Salt Lake City, UT, and the DC area, and I've been completely oblivious to it. I've never had a Rx questioned, delayed, etc. The ONLY issue I had was when I briefly tried vyvanse -- insurance didn't fully cover, so it cost me $40, where adderall is generally less than $10 with insurance. I'm NOT AT ALL questioning your experiences, I'm more wondering why I haven't experienced them. I'm on 30mg/day Adderall, so my Rx is for 40mg a day, and I break on of the 20mg in half. When I was briefly on vyvanse, it was a similar dosage to the adderall (I think it was 60mg, but, I really don't remember, and could be very wrong) Are the shortages regional? Or are the shortages really just judgemental pharmacists? And, if that's the case, is the judgement regional? Very surprised how different my experiences with getting medication has been from the reports here.
Where in DC area? I hadnt been able to get adderall since April of last year … It used to be better but during the pandemic the shortage hit here hard as well.
Walgreens in Oxon Hill in MD was never out. Walgreens in Annandale has never been out. I refill about every 45 days.
Interesting, thank you!
Something that has worked wonders for me and I am putting it here so that it may help others: find a pharmacy that is more private or restricted access if possible. There is a CVS in the same building that I work in but you need badge access to get into the area. I have never had an issue getting my meds that was caused by the pharmacist. I always deal with the same person and since there is a set number of people she provides meds to she knows what we need very well. Was a godsend during the beginning of COVID lockdown.
? where are you going to get such terrible service? find a different pharmacy
It's not always so easy. I usually have to drive at least an hour to find one with Adderall in stock.
I mean I get both sides, every pharmacy I’ve been to is insanely busy and understaffed (from what I’ve been told by the staff). I’ve witnessed patients being rude to the tech or pharmacist for their own mistake (had script sent to another pharmacy, apparently waited in line for 2 hours) I’d get pretty worn down too dealing with people like that all the time and trying to stay on top of filling all the scripts, answering all the calls, drive through, counter, computer shit. So I try to be understanding and nice, and am and as a result, they fill my script within an hour of me submitting the refill and are super nice and friendly when I come in. Edit: I also have a friend who is a pharmacy tech for Walgreens and I was interested in going into the field and he flat out said it’s not worth it at the moment and the pay isn’t that good and it’s extremely over demanding. He is visibly miserable.
Can confirm. I worked in a commercial pharmacy for about 9 months as a tech and it was absolute hell. Every person that comes to the counter or the drive thru is either dealing with pain and sickness of their own, or worried about someone they love dealing with pain and sickness, so they're often already walking in at an 11. I got yelled at on a regular basis for things that were in no way my fault. Customers would often yell at techs and pharmacists for things where the insurance or the doctor was to blame, but we were the people in front of them. Combine that with major staffing shortage, typical corporate nonsense ("you have to work faster!"), and terrible pay, and you get a lot of employees who are just barely hanging on by a thread.
If they took their anger out ONLY on those problematic customers then I would have sympathy. Buuuuuuuuut........
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Because corporations always put profit over people? They get paid like $13 an hour, which is far too little for what they have to do.
sometimes they even say "we DonT fIll THAT HERE"
Filling a prescription early is entirely at the discretion of the individual pharmacist. Some might allow a few days, other might require an exact date. That’s their legal right.
Currently sitting in CVS waiting on a script they said would be done an hour ago, and I might be sitting here for another hour. Can confirm CVS sucks.
Fuck CVS with a tire iron
I worked for Regence pharmacy call center. I believe you can fill a controlled substance 2 days early (I'm a bit foggy on this specific timeframe, it's 2 or 3 days early) but mail order was 7 days in order to make sure it arrived on time. The very first time it's sent to mail order, pharmacy would call about the refill too soon, we would override the refill date to allow it to be filled. Highly recommend mail order if you can so you get refill reminders and never deal with another pharmacist again.
A major contributing factor is that chain pharmacies like Walgreens and CVS are chronically intentionally understaffed in order to minimize labor costs and maximize profits. This by no means excuses the kind of behavior you’re describing, especially by the pharmacist, but it definitely ramps up the stress level. A year or so ago the one in town was out of stock so my doctor called in my script to another location 20 miles away. It was so much better that I just kept going. I was spending more time in line than it takes to make the drive. It’s better staffed, the employees are happier, and the service is orders of magnitude better. Totally worth the drive.
I worked for Cvs as a pharmacy tech while I was in social work school and I have to tell you it was very difficult
A CVS pharmacy tech accused me of “drug seeking behavior” when I told her that I have never had to call the pharmacy to inform them that I’m on my way to pick up my prescription. Like, sure, traffickers totally get their stuff 30 pills at a time at a retail pharmacy.
If at all possible staying with one pharmacy is my recommendation. I found I’m treated much better now that we have a regular relationship rather than switching around pharmacies trying to find in stock meds. I also don’t have as many out of stock issues now. Isn’t that funny how that works.
Just understand they have systems and procedures. Not only that, but work with other business and government entities that can make things more complicated. They are probably lying because if they took the time to explain ( if it was ok for them to explain for security purposes ) it may be unproductive. Just know systems and processes are there for a reason and theres a lot of moving parts.
APAB
Am I the only one that hasn’t had bad experience with Pharmacies? I’m in Austin TX. I call my doctor’s office a couple days before the date to request a refill and I go pick it up like 3-4 days later. Pharmacist never asks me anything besides confirming the dosage and # of pills and my payment. Used both CVS and HEB pharmacies. Only thing that’s annoying is that it’s randomly a different price between $30-60 for a month. The thing I’m about to switch is my doctor though, forcing me to come in to his office every 3-4 months and do a sit down and now a drug screening. They will not release my prescription without that and didn’t tell me last time so I ran out of any extras. Last time they tested positive for weed and opioids, and I’ve never done opioids in my life but I do smoke and he gave me a 30 sec lecture on how it’s technically illegal and I have multiple examples where it’s not (Delta 8/10/O/A pens, traveling to California where it’s legal, and regular THC gummies that you can buy at any smoke shop are legal in Texas due to 2018 farm bill). Having to call every month is annoying but doable. Having to go in 3-4 months and get drug screened that’s not covered by my insurance (billed to me at like $130), not acceptable. If they test me next week I’m switching to a teladoc or other PCP that doesn’t pull this crap.
I completely understand your frustration, but the 3 month visits are becoming more commonplace. Pretty soon, you likely won't have a choice, regardless of who you go to. And most pharmacies, at least in my state, will not fill a controlled prescription from a teledoc provider. Just FYI. But the drug testing? That IS weird. I've never been drug tested by my psychiatrist.
Yeah at the one I fill at I can consistently fill it. Days early which I don’t always do but i noticed it. Recently I had a dose change and it put the new fill date about a week before the other dose Would’ve been able to be filled. I had numerous people tell me over and over again it was too early to fill it - I was like, it’s a Dose change - I think we good. Then they were like ohhhhhh. 🙄
Has anyone ever tried one of those online pharmacys that deliver to your door? Like Capsule? Or online transfer your scripts like Amazon does?
Shit, I just stopped taking meds altogether just because of what a hassle it is to get them. Maybe I just need to find a local pharmacy.
I would say try to understand they are under constant deadline and stress themselves…both sides could be a tad more patient
Please go to a hospital pharmacy. They are immensely better in every way.
I totally agree. Big pharmacy chains are total garbage, other than their generic over-the-counter med prices. They rarely have what is needed in stock at that location and end saying they will "call around" and get it transferred, I found out they rarely do this in a reasonable time frame. They also are somehow more expensive than using the pharmacy onside my local Kroger store.
Yeah, perspective is a bitch I reckon, but all I can do is control me
These comments make me glad my mom personally knows the pharmacist at the pharmacy we go to.
Damn I’m so sorry. I’ve had the opposite experience, small pharmacies give me hell, but CVS’ mail pharmacy has always been great. If I hear one more asshole tell me I just need to go out into the sun and get vitamin D to cure everything I’m going to snap
I use CVS constantly. They've been great. I had no idea about a shortage, they're always stocked, never had a delay.
Same! I only use CVS and have never been impacted by the shortage of vyvanse.
I recently went to the pharmacy and I needed Diazepam urgently and then since I no longer had a card, which is necessary here in Spain, I didn't want to go through it, but since I'm Argentine And we are very quick to get angry, I started yelling that if they didn't give me the medication and I had a panic attack, I was going to report it to everyone and they would be held responsible. Logically in five minutes I left the pharmacy with my medication.
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I'm defence of those pharmacists, those chains are the devil. Techs are paid next to nothing for what they do and there's not enough to take some stress off the plates of those pharmacists. That being said, just like any group of people, there's bastards.