Medicine

Prescription Medicine

If you need medicine, your doctor will give you a Prescription.

       • A Prescription is a piece of paper with the name of the medicine.

You will go to a Pharmacy.  Give your prescription to the Pharmacist.  The pharmacist will give you the medicine.  This medicine is usually paid for by health insurance.  Health insurance will most often pay for the generic, less expensive version of medicine.  Many medicines have more than one name.

Non-Prescription Medicine/Over-The-Counter Medicine

You do not need a prescription to buy some medicine:

• For headache

• For stomach ache

• For couch or cold

• For cuts

You can buy this medicine at the pharmacy or grocery store.  This medicine is not usually paid for by health insurance.  You may have to pay with money.  Some health insurances have special programs to get the generic version of non­prescription medicine for free.  For example, your insurance may pay for Ibuprofen which is the generic form of Advil.  Ask your case manager or doctor about these programs.

Instructions for Medicine

Medicine can be a pill or a liquid.

The doctor or pharmacist will tell you how to take your medicine.

You should know:

•  How many pills/liquid to take

• How many times each day

• What time during the day to take your medicine

• How many days or weeks to take your medicine

If you need to take medicine for a long time, the prescription may have Refills

• Refill -the pharmacist will give you more medicine without a new prescription from your doctor

• Note how many Refills listed on your medicine bottle

• This is the number of times you can get new medicine without visiting your doctor

• If you have -0- refills and need to take more medicine, see your doctor

• Your doctor may give you a new prescription for more medicine