I called the pharmacy to request a refill of an eyedrop I have been using for one of my animals on Saturday Jan 8th. The gentleman I spoke with told me it would be ready on Jan. 10th in the afternoon. A few minutes later I received a call from a woman in the pharmacy (who did not identify herself, but later turned out to be the pharmacist), who told me that this prescription was not “due for refill” yet, and I would have to call back on the 18th of Jan. I was confused since I had just been told that I could pick it up in two days. I tried to get more information, and explained that I was about to run out of the eyedrop. When I told her that I had not had any issue previously regarding when I could request a refill, since I was paying out of pocket, and not with insurance, she told me “This is not an excuse for overusing the medication.”
When I had picked up the initial bottle of medication a number of months ago the pharmacist who gave it to me had told me that the bottle should last six weeks at the prescribed dosage. This has turned out to be true. I double-checked on Sunday the 9th, and realized that I had picked up the last bottle 5 and a half weeks earlier. On December 2nd. When I called back to try to explain this, and to ask again if it would be possible to refill because I was close to running out, the person I spoke with referred me to this same woman and told me that she was the pharmacist. When the pharmacist got on the line, before I could say anything, she told me “This is not an argument, Paula.” She reiterated what she had said the day before about not calling back until the 18th. When I tried to tell her that it had been nearly 6 weeks since I picked up the last bottle, and that I had been told that the bottle should last 6 weeks, she told me that in fact the bottle should last 50 days, not 6 weeks.
This is an eyedrop for a pet. Not only is the dropper extremely difficult to control, making getting only one drop out at a time difficult, but if the pet moves or blinks, and I miss getting the drop into the eye, I have to use a second or third drop.
All I am trying to do is take care of my animal, who has multiple eye conditions and other health problems. I am not trying to do anything “bad” or “wrong.” I’m not trying to cause problems. Is this is a new rule for 2022 that if a prescription should supposedly last 50 days I am not allowed to request a refill for 47 days, even if am paying out of pocket?
I do understand that it has been a VERY difficult couple of years for essential workers, and that staff at stores are stressed and stretched, but I would appreciate having more information about why I am being told two different sets of things about refilling this prescription and the volume in the bottle. I also do not feel that it is appropriate for this pharmacist to have taken out her frustrations about her job on me, the customer. I am also stretched and stressed and being told I am “arguing” when I am simply trying to get clarity, and being accused of “overusing” a medication on my pet seems really inappropriate on the part of this employee.
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Found At: Fred Meyer 7404 N Interstate Ave, Portland, 37 Complaints and Reviews – ComplaintsBoard.com