PILL SPLITTING
Save up to an additional 56% on your medications!
Potential cost savings from pill-splitting
Drug Name Clinical uses Savings
Clonazepam (Klonopin) Panic disorder; epilepsy 41%
Doxazosin (Cardura) Hypertension; prostate enlargement 46%
Citalopram (Celexa) Depression 46%
Atorvastatin (Lipitor) High cholesterol 33%
Paroxetine (Paxil) Depression; anxiety 46%
Pravastatin (Pravachol) High cholesterol 23%
Nefazodone (Serzone) Depression 49%
Sildenafil (Viagra) Impotence 50%
Lisinopril (Zestril) Congestive heart failure; hypertension 38%
Sertraline (Zoloft) Depression 46%
Olanzapine (Zyprexa) Schizophrenia; bipolar disorder 31%
Click here to search for pills that can be split
High medication costs getting you down? Pill splitting may be just the answer you are looking for.
This method may save consumers an average of 37% off their prescription costs. With some medications this savings may be as much as 56%.
To see if this method is right for you, you will first need to do your homework. Begin by consulting the list provided, in our search engine or ask your doctor or pharmacist if your medication is available in a dose double your normal dosage (for example, if you normally take a 20 mg dose, is a 40 mg pill available). If it is, ask whether there would be any problems with splitting the tablets or capsules (read further for specific methods to be used).
Certain medications require a finely tuned dosage or their pharmacology may be altered if their protective coating is damaged. Zyprexa (olanzapine) is one such medication. It must be used within seven days after being split. Another example is the pain medication Oxycontin. This medication is a time release formulation. Splitting the pill would cause you to receive several hours worth of medication all at once and could be dangerous. Finally, do a cost comparison between the two dosages. If the higher dose is anything less than double the cost for your regular dose then you will be saving money by having your doctor prescribe the higher dose and then splitting it.
To split tablets you will need a pill splitter. Most pharmacies should stock these. You can also purchase them online at many locations. If your medication is in capsule form, you may be able to split it as well by emptying the contents of one capsule into a glass of juice. By drinking half and saving half for the following day you are effectively cutting the dose in half. Remember to refrigerate the mixture.
This method may be appropriate for many psychotropic medications because small differences in dosage do not affect their effectiveness. Please check with your doctor or pharmacist for specifics about your own medication.
This method is not appropriate in cases where patients have no social support, poor eyesight, diminished cognition, disorganized thinking, or impaired dexterity.
Some pills that are commonly split include:
Statins, like Crestor, Lipitor, and Pravachol
Antidepressants, like Celexa, Paxil, and Zoloft
ACE-Inhibitors, like Monopril, Prinivil, Univasc, and Zestril
Angiotensin receptor blockers, like Avapro and Cozaar
So what drugs shouldn't be split?
Drugs with an enteric coating, designed to protect the stomach. Once split, the interior of the pill could irritate the stomach, leading to potentially serious problems.
Drugs that are time-release or long-acting. Cutting the pill destroys the time-release effect, which means you could get too much of the medicine too quickly.
Drugs taken more often than once a day. Drugs that work best with pill splitting are usually taken once a day. They last a while in the body. Why is this important? Even if you're careful when splitting pills, you won't always get it quite right. Sometimes one half will be a bit bigger than the other. But if the drug lasts a long time in the body, these variations won't matter. The amount of medicine in your body at any given time stays pretty level. That's not true with drugs that are taken several times a day, since the body processes them quickly. The amount of the medication in your system will fluctuate more dramatically: too little one day and too much the next.
Most of our patients reported that pill splitting was 'no big deal' and they thought it was a great way for them to save money. We believe it is important to find ways to make medications more affordable.
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