Detroit – Can the nearly 12 million Americans who take cholesterol-lowering drugs save money by splitting high-dose pills in half, and get the same results as if they were taking lower-dose pills? Yes, according to a study to be released later this month by University of Michigan researchers.
The study found that splitting the cholesterol-lowering pills in half is safe and effective and saved patients an average of $5 to $7 in monthly co-pays.
Although the savings may seem insignificant, most patients want to save a few dollars where they can, said lead author Hae Mi Choe, a clinical assistant professor in the university’s College of Pharmacy and a University of Michigan Health System clinical pharmacist. The research will be published in the American Journal of Managed Care.
Susan Blackwell, a University of Michigan employee who participated in the six-month study, pays $8 a month for Simvastatin, the generic version of the cholesterol-lowering drug Zocor. She was not aware before the study that she could split her tablets.
“Nowadays, any time you can save money, it helps,” she said Tuesday. “You have a little more to put in the gas tank.”
As a result of the 2005 research, in 2006 the University of Michigan started a pill- splitting program that saved the university $195,000 and cut drug costs for 500 employees and retirees by more than $25,000.
Patients have been splitting cholesterol- lowering pills for years to save money. High-dose pills often cost the same as lower-dose pills – or just slightly more. Cutting the pills and taking half doses reduces patients’ out-of-pocket prescription costs.
Rebecca Hamm, a spokeswoman for Pfizer Inc., which manufactures Lipitor, said the company does not recommend splitting the tablet because it was not designed to be cut, and patients could end up ingesting a different dosage than what was approved.
But splitting cholesterol-lowering pills is a safe practice, according to doctors and pharmacists, because the small day-to-day dose fluctuations that can occur when cut pills are taken do not make a major difference in cholesterol levels.
Pills can be split as long as they are not coated or time-release tablets, said pharmacist Melinda Zaher, who co-owns Crown Pharmacy in Redford Township, Mich.
