Penny Wise and Pound Foolish
Sandy Chung is grappling with a new kind of request at her pediatrics office in Fairfax, Va.: prescriptions for aspirin and diaper-rash cream. Patients are demanding doctors’ orders for over-the-counter products because of a provision in the health-care overhaul that slipped past nearly everyone’s radar. It says people who want a tax break to buy such items with what’s known as flexible-spending accounts need to get a prescription first. The change also applies to health savings accounts. About 33 million people have FSAs, and about 23 million have HSAs or HRAs.
Full article on patients requesting over-the-counter drugs from their doctors.
This sounds like one of those you-have-to-pass-it-to-find-out-what’s-in-it posts. Full of nasty surprises.
Agree totally. This is penny wise and pound foolish.
To quote Forrest Gump, “Stupid is as stupid does.”
It’s not only a dumb rule, it will raise health care costs.