Bushie: The Final Frontier - Update Season V

[opebo]

And with all of that being said, do you really think you are overpaying at your pharmacy?

I don't, I'm sure it is the drug companies, insurance companies, and medical companies (hospital chains, etc.) that are the villains here.

As far as I understand it, pharmacists just make $100-120 thousand, right?  Its perfectly reasonable.  But I do think a wage of $15-25/hour would be appropriate for the underlings for a variety of reasons.

[memphis]

Is it that hard to stand for 8 hours?

Wow - could only be said by someone who has never had to do it!

Lol Opebo. Just because you are a lazy does not mean everyone else is. I have to stand up at my job for 8 hours every single day.

You like standing up all day?  You accept it without objection?  Rather browbeaten, aren't you lad?

It's the nature of the job. It's fast paced so I wouldn't have time to sit. There is usually a chair for those entering the prescriptions but you have to do other tasks at the same time so you aren't sitting for long. The Pharmacist can sit for most of the time though, provided the Pharmacy has enough space for a chair, which in many cases is not true.

I don't mind it much because I am studying to be a Pharmacist and will be paid well. The technicians don't get paid well at all though, and they have to run around. It pisses me off when people target Pharmacies as location where people are overpaid (looking at you Memphis). The Pharmacist gets paid well, but they get paid for their knowledge and extensive loans, and there is never more than one working at a time. Everyone else is a technician or a Pharmacist intern. Technicians don't get paid much above minimum wage and that is who you usually interact with when you go to a Pharmacy.

The techs are definately not overpaid. Just like any other cashier job except there are more security issues. Pharmacists are indeed very well educated, but I don't really understand why. What do they do other than take pills from big bottles and put them into small bottles? I don't believe there's any science going on behind the Walgreens desk. Please correct me if I'm wrong. The side effects are all listed on the computer print out.

We are checking for drug interactions all the time. We need to be able to educate patients on how to take their medications and any questions they may have. Usually about interactions with OTC's. We need to answer questions about dosing for children for OTC's. We also get questions about herbal and dietary supplements and need to be able to answer those. Usually doctors don't tell their patients how to take their medication and about side effects, figuring it is our job and that is true. Some people just treat us as a vending machine, but that is not supposed to be our purpose.

Leaving that aside, someone also needs to manage the Pharmacy and verify everything is done exactly right. We also need to ensure compliance with the hundreds of thousands of laws regarding drugs and pharmacies. This means verifying that prescriptions are entered correctly, they are on the right type of paper, they have all the information necessary by law. Then we need to verify that the technicians did their job right and don't dispense the wrong drug or wrong amount (very important for controlled drugs). And of course in an average pharmacy, you are doing this about 400 times a day. While counseling and checking for drug interactions.

And did I mention dealing with insurance companies? Oh insurance.....we should get paid double for having to deal with their bullsh**t. Any good Pharmacist is an expert on insurance practices and the law. We are a very multifaceted profession.

And with all of that being said, do you really think you are overpaying at your pharmacy? Most drugs cost just a few dollars for a 30 day supply and about $10 for a 90 day supply. The ones that are expensive are usually due to the costs charged to us by the pharmaceutical companies. They are the ones you are mad at. Or maybe your insurance company, which sometimes raises prices on certain drugs within a class to guide you towards another one since they might have sweetheart deals with a certain manufacturer. So don't blame us for that.

All of that is important, but it's not science either. It's managing peasants and dealing with the government and insurance companies. I'm not blaming you, as it's not a system you created, but it seems a pity to have to master organic chemistry just to do the tasks you described.
Also, educating people how to take their medication? You put it in your mouth and swallow. As frequently as directed by the doctor. As for interactions, the computer will print out in all caps "DO NOT TAKE WITH ALCOHOL" if you're taking a seditive or whatever. Also, it has not been my experience that pills cost a few dollars. The cost varies wildly with name brands frequenly costing a few hundred dollars for a month's supply.  Most generics are in the neighborhood of $30 for a month's supply.  It's not the insurance company's fault that prices are high. And it's not the individual pharmacist's fault either, so I don't know why you're getting so defensive. I'm not attacking you personally. You've worked hard and are getting a good job. Congrats.

[memphis]

And with all of that being said, do you really think you are overpaying at your pharmacy?

I don't, I'm sure it is the drug companies, insurance companies, and medical companies (hospital chains, etc.) that are the villains here.

Don't let Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid and the rest off so easily. They have very large markups. But nobody cares. Because the insurance companies (or just as often, the government) is paying most of the bill.

[Mr. Morden]

Last week one day, I applied to seven jobs online in less than two hours. Just saying...

What kind of jobs could you 'apply for' online?  Couldn't be a real job, surely.

It's the 21st century, not the 19th.

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

Interesting developments today. So, BushOK is so lazy that he is sending his personal information over an internet forum for someone to fill out an application for him? Am I reading this right?

[Joe Biden 2020]

Interesting developments today. So, BushOK is so lazy that he is sending his personal information over an internet forum for someone to fill out an application for him? Am I reading this right?

Its not that I'm lazy, its just that he offered and I took him up on the offer.  I've been doing some applying on my own in the past couple of hours, too.

[memphis]

Interesting developments today. So, BushOK is so lazy that he is sending his personal information over an internet forum for someone to fill out an application for him? Am I reading this right?

I'm not actually going to do it. It was just a ruse to see if he has learned enough about the world not to give out his SSN. And he hasn't. However, I have no interest in fraud. This ends only in ridicule, not in crime.

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

Interesting developments today. So, BushOK is so lazy that he is sending his personal information over an internet forum for someone to fill out an application for him? Am I reading this right?

Its not that I'm lazy, its just that he offered and I took him up on the offer.  I've been doing some applying on my own in the past couple of hours, too.

By the time you typed out all your information to send to memphis, you could do the same thing on Target's website or however you apply there. Talk about inefficiency! And I hate inefficiency!

 

[Sbane]

Is it that hard to stand for 8 hours?

Wow - could only be said by someone who has never had to do it!

Lol Opebo. Just because you are a lazy does not mean everyone else is. I have to stand up at my job for 8 hours every single day.

You like standing up all day?  You accept it without objection?  Rather browbeaten, aren't you lad?

It's the nature of the job. It's fast paced so I wouldn't have time to sit. There is usually a chair for those entering the prescriptions but you have to do other tasks at the same time so you aren't sitting for long. The Pharmacist can sit for most of the time though, provided the Pharmacy has enough space for a chair, which in many cases is not true.

I don't mind it much because I am studying to be a Pharmacist and will be paid well. The technicians don't get paid well at all though, and they have to run around. It pisses me off when people target Pharmacies as location where people are overpaid (looking at you Memphis). The Pharmacist gets paid well, but they get paid for their knowledge and extensive loans, and there is never more than one working at a time. Everyone else is a technician or a Pharmacist intern. Technicians don't get paid much above minimum wage and that is who you usually interact with when you go to a Pharmacy.

The techs are definately not overpaid. Just like any other cashier job except there are more security issues. Pharmacists are indeed very well educated, but I don't really understand why. What do they do other than take pills from big bottles and put them into small bottles? I don't believe there's any science going on behind the Walgreens desk. Please correct me if I'm wrong. The side effects are all listed on the computer print out.

We are checking for drug interactions all the time. We need to be able to educate patients on how to take their medications and any questions they may have. Usually about interactions with OTC's. We need to answer questions about dosing for children for OTC's. We also get questions about herbal and dietary supplements and need to be able to answer those. Usually doctors don't tell their patients how to take their medication and about side effects, figuring it is our job and that is true. Some people just treat us as a vending machine, but that is not supposed to be our purpose.

Leaving that aside, someone also needs to manage the Pharmacy and verify everything is done exactly right. We also need to ensure compliance with the hundreds of thousands of laws regarding drugs and pharmacies. This means verifying that prescriptions are entered correctly, they are on the right type of paper, they have all the information necessary by law. Then we need to verify that the technicians did their job right and don't dispense the wrong drug or wrong amount (very important for controlled drugs). And of course in an average pharmacy, you are doing this about 400 times a day. While counseling and checking for drug interactions.

And did I mention dealing with insurance companies? Oh insurance.....we should get paid double for having to deal with their bullsh**t. Any good Pharmacist is an expert on insurance practices and the law. We are a very multifaceted profession.

And with all of that being said, do you really think you are overpaying at your pharmacy? Most drugs cost just a few dollars for a 30 day supply and about $10 for a 90 day supply. The ones that are expensive are usually due to the costs charged to us by the pharmaceutical companies. They are the ones you are mad at. Or maybe your insurance company, which sometimes raises prices on certain drugs within a class to guide you towards another one since they might have sweetheart deals with a certain manufacturer. So don't blame us for that.

All of that is important, but it's not science either. It's managing peasants and dealing with the government and insurance companies. I'm not blaming you, as it's not a system you created, but it seems a pity to have to master organic chemistry just to do the tasks you described.
Also, educating people how to take their medication? You put it in your mouth and swallow. As frequently as directed by the doctor. As for interactions, the computer will print out in all caps "DO NOT TAKE WITH ALCOHOL" if you're taking a seditive or whatever. Also, it has not been my experience that pills cost a few dollars. The cost varies wildly with name brands frequenly costing a few hundred dollars for a month's supply.  Most generics are in the neighborhood of $30 for a month's supply.  It's not the insurance company's fault that prices are high. And it's not the individual pharmacist's fault either, so I don't know why you're getting so defensive. I'm not attacking you personally. You've worked hard and are getting a good job. Congrats.

Yeah, nobody enjoys the more mundane tasks, but it needs to be done. Did you know, we also need to be expert trash sorters?

As for counseling, it has more to do with why you are taking the drug in the first place to ensure compliance. This is important for something like blood pressure where a lot of people don't get it. You are smart Memphis, so of course you can read everything and probably understand why it is necessary to be compliant. Not everyone does that or understand why they need to take their medication or how to take it (finish your antibiotics, for example, which I will say maybe 20 times a day). And yes, we do need to spell out how to take it in some circumstances. Not for pills, but say an antibiotic solution for a baby with an ear infection. People have actually put the drug directly into the ear. True story. Or let's take Spiriva. Some people will actually take the capsule separately, and just suck on the handihaler even though there is no drug in there.

Brand name drugs do cost a lot, but doesn't your pharmacy dispense generics to you unless your doctor requests they do not? Our computer system automatically changes the drug to a generic even if the doctor writes the brand name on there. Unless the doctor specifically signs a certain line or you request it, we dispense the generic. Most of the medications that are dispensed, for blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes, have generics. And most of them do not cost more than $5-10/month supply for a generic. Also go take a look at the Walmart $4 dollar list. Most other pharmacies will price match it so you don't even need to transfer your prescriptions there to reap the benefit. Again, a lot depends on your ailment. If you need to take Humira or Enbrel for whatever it is that ails you, then yeah it's going to cost you a lot. And it costs us a lot to order it too, which is why we confirm with the patient they will actually get it before we order it.

Walmart coming in with their $4 generics, as well as mail order pharmacies, has led to a lot of the markups you are complaining about going down. And the Pharmacist shortage is over, which was another cause. Think about it, you can actually choose your pharmacy. You often don't choose your hospital or the procedures or tests they run on you as you lie their half unconscious. Most people who go to a community pharmacy can make rational choices, and that has led to lower costs. If higher costs happen associated with drugs, it happens because doctors prescribe expensive drugs when they don't need to. Again, you can't blame CVS, Rite Aid or Walgreens for that. The markup you are referring to is not really that relevant. Pharmacies make their money with sheer volume, there is little extracted from any one patient. That is why independent pharmacies are dead.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Interesting developments today. So, BushOK is so lazy that he is sending his personal information over an internet forum for someone to fill out an application for him? Am I reading this right?

I'm not actually going to do it. It was just a ruse to see if he has learned enough about the world not to give out his SSN. And he hasn't. However, I have no interest in fraud. This ends only in ridicule, not in crime.

$&@!

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

Interesting developments today. So, BushOK is so lazy that he is sending his personal information over an internet forum for someone to fill out an application for him? Am I reading this right?

I'm not actually going to do it. It was just a ruse to see if he has learned enough about the world not to give out his SSN. And he hasn't. However, I have no interest in fraud. This ends only in ridicule, not in crime.

$&@!

I always find the best way to get things done is to do it myself. Just a suggestion.

[Eraserhead]

Bushie seriously gave out his SSN on here because he was too lazy to fill out an online application? Wow. And this is a 30 year-old man? Amazing stuff.

[Mr. Morden]

Bushie seriously gave out his SSN on here because he was too lazy to fill out an online application? Wow. And this is a 30 year-old man? Amazing stuff.

This is the same guy who quit his job because he got an offer from a fake company in New Zealand.  Sharing your SSN hardly tops that. 

[Sbane]

Interesting developments today. So, BushOK is so lazy that he is sending his personal information over an internet forum for someone to fill out an application for him? Am I reading this right?

I'm not actually going to do it. It was just a ruse to see if he has learned enough about the world not to give out his SSN. And he hasn't. However, I have no interest in fraud. This ends only in ridicule, not in crime.

$&@!

I always find the best way to get things done is to do it myself. Just a suggestion.

Especially if those things require giving out your SSN.

[Mr. Morden]

Bushie, out of curiosity, other than the fake New Zealand company, have you ever responded to any scam emails, like the Nigerian 419 scams, or other such things?  Have you ever responded to an email written in all caps?

Also, https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=100092.0

[Joe Biden 2020]

Bushie, out of curiosity, other than the fake New Zealand company, have you ever responded to any scam emails, like the Nigerian 419 scams, or other such things?  Have you ever responded to an email written in all caps?

Also, https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=100092.0

Oh, heavens no.  I can spot Nigerian scams 5 miles off.

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

Bushie, out of curiosity, other than the fake New Zealand company, have you ever responded to any scam emails, like the Nigerian 419 scams, or other such things?  Have you ever responded to an email written in all caps?

Also, https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=100092.0

Oh, heavens no.  I can spot Nigerian scams 5 miles off.

But can you spot Kenyan scams?

[Joe Biden 2020]

Bushie, out of curiosity, other than the fake New Zealand company, have you ever responded to any scam emails, like the Nigerian 419 scams, or other such things?  Have you ever responded to an email written in all caps?

Also, https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=100092.0

Oh, heavens no.  I can spot Nigerian scams 5 miles off.

But can you spot Kenyan scams?

Most likely.  Thankfully, I haven't come across any, yet.

[Eraserhead]

And what's all this about "heart attacks"? Has he had heart attacks before?

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

And what's all this about "heart attacks"? Has he had heart attacks before?

I think he did or almost had one a few years ago.

[Joe Biden 2020]

And what's all this about "heart attacks"? Has he had heart attacks before?

I think he did or almost had one a few years ago.

Two unofficial heart attacks (may just have been over anxiety on my part), in my junior year of high school at age 17 then again November 2011 at age 29, which precipitated my 25 lb weight drop over the Winter.

[Sbane]

And what's all this about "heart attacks"? Has he had heart attacks before?

I think he did or almost had one a few years ago.

Two unofficial heart attacks (may just have been over anxiety on my part), in my junior year of high school at age 17 then again November 2011 at age 29, which precipitated my 25 lb weight drop over the Winter.

"unofficial"? What does that mean?

[Joe Biden 2020]

And what's all this about "heart attacks"? Has he had heart attacks before?

I think he did or almost had one a few years ago.

Two unofficial heart attacks (may just have been over anxiety on my part), in my junior year of high school at age 17 then again November 2011 at age 29, which precipitated my 25 lb weight drop over the Winter.

"unofficial"? What does that mean?

never confirmed by a cardiologist.  In fact, in both cases, I never even went to the doctor.  I just took it easy the rest of the day.

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

If you ever needed motivation to lose weight, those two episodes should've been it. But I guess they weren't severe enough.

[Joe Biden 2020]

If you ever needed motivation to lose weight, those two episodes should've been it. But I guess they weren't severe enough.

The first episode I was a normal weight and very healthy, so its effects wore off when I started to really gain weight more than 2 years later.  The second episode prompted me to lose 25-30 lbs last Winter, but it died out when I went to Africa.