Question: I want to get a three-month supply of my medications. How do I get that from my pharmacy?

Answer: 2024 is here! All good things will come our way as long as we look for them!

There are a few steps to getting your three months’ supply of medications from the pharmacy, so we will go through them and then talk a bit about each step. Some insurance companies allow for a 100 day supply in 2024, so look in your insurance information to see if that is available to you before you talk with your provider.

The first step is talking with your provider, the doctor who prescribed the medication. That physician must order the medication in a three month/90-day supply format. This can usually be requested with a phone call to your provider’s office. You could also use your patient portal to make that request.

Be sure you have informed your provider of the pharmacy you are using (either the physical location and name of the pharmacy or a mail order pharmacy) and ask for the medications you want in the three month (90-day supply).

There are some medications that cannot be filled for this longer period. We generally call those medications, controlled substances. If you take this type of medication, you already understand that restriction and how to handle those refills.

After your provider/doctor has sent the 90-day supply requests to your pharmacy of choice, you then must go to the pharmacy to let them know you want to fill the 90-day supplies. I would also ask them to delete the older prescriptions that are in the 30-day supply format. That way there won’t be any mistakes as you call in refills or ask for refills.

These 90-day supplies/refills should only be used for medications that you know you will be taking for at least that long. If you are trying something new, I would fill the shortest possible amount so that you don’t buy a lot of the medication only to find out it doesn’t work for you, or you have adverse side effects from the new medication. With new medication, once you know it is working for you, you can then move it to the 90-day supply amount.

The 90-day supplies of medications sometimes save you money, as some insurance companies give you a discount for the large supply of medications. But mostly it is just nice to get a larger supply of medications, requiring fewer trips to the pharmacy. It would be even better if they all needed to be refilled at the same time, but that rarely seems to work. That is a question much like where does that second sock go in the washing machine?

The other nice feature of a 90-day supply of medication is that it often allows us a larger window to renew the medications. 90-day supplies can be renewed up to 10 days in advance of when you will need them. With a 30-day supply of medication it is often closer to a 3 or 4 day window of renewing the medication. So, the 90-day supplies are easier to bundle together with that longer refill window of opportunity.

Automatic refill is another decision you need to make when thinking about your medications. Many like the automatic refill system as it allows you to take this off your list of things to think about. Your pharmacy will notify you when your medications are ready to pick up and you go to the pharmacy to pay for them and pick them up. That works very well as long as you are a person who takes your medication as prescribed by your physician. Sometimes our doses change, or we stop taking the medications without telling the pharmacy. So, the pharmacy is trying to refill a medication we don’t need yet, or at all. This requires you speak to the pharmacy to alert them to the change and either adjust the medication refill or take it off your list of current medications.

If you just go to the pharmacy and pick up everything without reviewing the order, you may find you are paying for medications that you don’t need.

Hoping as you begin 2024, you are planning new adventures and opportunities that excite you.

Janell Sluga is a Geriatric Care Manager helping seniors in our community access services and insurance. To reach her, please email editorial@post-journal.com.