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Health care costs have made prescription drugs out of reach for many people. An offer to help you get free medicines has hit some Kentucky mailboxes, but it will only end up costing you.
A senior citizen called your Better Business Bureau very upset because she and her husband were trying to get the many prescriptions they take at no cost, and thought they had found the answer.
She got information from a company called the "Bureau of Prescription Help." which seemed to promise help in getting free medicines. The form she received asked for the names of their medications and the prescribing doctor.
Then came the catch - she had to send in $10 for each prescription and the process would start. Between her and her husband, that would add up to about $100 dollars...money they don't have.
She called your BBB, where we looked up the report for this company, also doing business as the Free Medicine Foundation in Missouri. The St. Louis Better Business Bureau has given this company an "F" rating due to unanswered and unresolved complaints.
In addition, the "F" comes due to the fact that the BBB has questioned the company's use of the words free and foundation in its name. They say the firm is not a foundation or a charity, and the Bureau believes that can mislead consumers.
Pharmaceutical companies do have programs available for qualifying persons to receive certain low or no cost medicines. The Partnership for Prescription Assistance has a website at www.helpingpatients.org for people to get information - and their site even says they will not ask you for money to process a request. You might also be able to get information from your doctor or pharmacist.
So if anyone offers you free medicines but asks for a fee to apply, don't fall for it!
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Be a Don't Fall for It! informant! If you have something to share you believe may be a fraudulent offer or scam, please let the BBB know! Call us at (859) 259-1008 or toll-free, 1-800-866-6668, or email us at info@lexbbb.com.
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