In This Issue:

- Understanding Your Medicine

- Getting the Right Generic Drug

- Shortages Are Common, and Expensive

- Insurance Coverage Issues

- Best Tips for Cutting Drug Costs

- Excerpt from Introduction: Becoming a Smarter Buyer of Prescription Drugs:

Filling a doctor's prescription should be simple, especially if it's a drug you've used before. But getting even "routine" prescriptions for an affordable price can be challenging. Are generics available? Are they suitable substitutes? Where were the drugs made? What about insurance coverage? And finally, drug shortages can play a role.

According to GoodRX, a drug comparison website, 45 in 100 Americans have trouble paying for their prescription medicines, and more than 1 in 4 don't fill a prescription they've been given by their doctor because they can't afford it.

This month, I discuss how you can lower your prescription drug costs by understanding how they move from manufacturer to pharmacy to consumer, and by asking the right questions of the people in control of providing your meds.