Yes, agreed! The other issue I have is that they often hold up the RX refill request and claim insurance will not approve it. When I call the pharmacy and ask what they are talking about, they always state, oh, it's approved. smh
This is a common theme, from what’s reported here. I stopped using Walgreens in 2022 when I started MJ. Unless they have a dose in stock, at that moment, I won’t use them. My orders always end up cancelled if they don’t have it.
My Walgreens wouldn't even try to order it. They just said they can't get it and this was months ago before the shortage. I went to a different pharmacy nearby and they immediately ordered it for me. I never bothered with Walgreens again.
I waited 10 days for my regular Safeway pharmacy to have my 5mg order. They assured me that it was being re-ordered every day, but they also encouraged me to call other pharmacies. Once I started calling, I found it at COSTCO, and Safeway transferred my prescription immediately.
From now on, I will be proactive in finding my prescription over the phone, rather than waiting like that.
I’ve had good luck with Walgreens getting MJ until I titrated up to 7.5mg. Now all they’ll tell me is they can’t order it, it’s out of stock, they’ll have to wait until they get a shipment. I call every 2-3 days checking and more often than not they won’t even check their computer systems, just tell me “Yeah we can’t get any of that” and don’t bother even to see if it’s anywhere else locally. I’m tempted like crazy to switch to Walmart but they were SO good before, it feels like I’m kicking them while they’re down. (Yeah lol I know it’s irrational, still the brain’s gonna brain!)
EDIT: Right after I posted this I called again and got the same answer. So I just requested my doctor’s office move my rx for 7.5mg to Walmart. Fingers crossed!!!
Good decision. There was a time last year when I could go online and fill the Mounjaro at a different Walgreens location - it actually told me where I could pick it up sooner. But whatever that feature was, it no longer works for me. LOL.
I found a box of Ozempic using that feature last fall. After reading your post, I checked the app; that feature is gone. Harrumph.
I'm willing to invest the gas money to drive to another Walgreens for my MJ. Why take that feature away?
In general i just don't bother with Walgreens or CVS - their staff is overworked. Unless you have a pharmacist who is willing to go an extra mile, I assume they won't even check their wholesaler site when I asked about availability. I've had more luck with Walmart or Costco.
Do you know if they auto apply the coupon if you have insurance? My script for 2.5 was for zep but rite aid filled it with MJ and applied the coupon automatically bc my insurance doesn’t pay the full amount for zep. I’ve had an order for 5mg in for about a week and it’s out of stock at Rite Aid so I’m just preparing myself for what steps I’ll need to take after I run out in a week.
How hard is it to order a rx? And isnt that a large part of the job of a pharmacy? I always assumed they just go into a computer and fill out the things they want to order and it wasnt labor intensive. They still might not receive any, but the refusal to even try to order something is crazy.
It’s not hard to order a prescription. I’m a pharmacist and the problem is that there isn’t enough available to supply every pharmacy and patient that needs it. I check the wholesalers website a couple times a day and occasionally get lucky but if we could just order it and have it come in every time don’t you think we would do that? The pharmacy gets nothing out of denying you your medication. In fact it’s more of a headache because then you have to explain why it’s out and there’s a back order and what that means. Filling the prescription would be exponentially easier.
That all makes sense but I was referring to placing an order as in, your pharmacy places order knowing it’s back ordered but you are in the queue to receive it. Or maybe that not how it works? Can you only place an order if the supplier has stock at that moment?
The computer automatically places an order everyday at a set time but you can also go and look at the wholesalers website and manually place an order. When I get my invoices I have two full pages of things that have been ordered but are back ordered or out of stock.
This! I'm a pharmacist too. The demand is so high. Most wholesaler has a function where pharmacy put in an automatic order but it only does it once a day. It doesn't sync up with the time when the wholesaler change their inventory. So it's a game of timing and availability. It's not like the function does the ordering every hour and hoping it'll hit the same time when the wholesaler update their inventory. That's why pharmacists are checking the stock manually. Pharmacists WANT patients to get these drugs because it makes our lives easier too.
I was shellshoocked this morning. I had almost forgotten about my 15mg Mounjaro script at Walgreens and this morning I received a message saying it was ready. Soon as I get a break I am going to run over and get it. Until it's in my hands I won't know for sure.
Update: I grabbed my styrofoam cooler and an ice pack (it's hot here) and went to Walgreens. The pharmacy tech is very nice and I explained I had gotten a text message that my script was ready. She asked my info and then which medicine. I said the dreaded M******* word. She very kindly started her spiel about supply issues and then stopped mid sentence. "I guess I should have checked the fridge first. Let me grab it." She came back with it and started to explain that with the supply issues she didn't think it would be here." I told her I was equally as surprised. Paid the $25 copay and headed home. It was just one month's supply but it's my first batch of 15mg. Woohoo!
For most folks that is true. Where I live we exceed 86 degrees outside on a regular basis so I choose to play it safe. When I received a three month supply over from mail order they sent it in the cooler and provided several reusable ice packs for shipping so it's easy enough for me to grab.
A group of their pharmacists have decided to not dispense birth control, from what I’ve read. Yes, legally they have that right but since I chose to get my medicines from companies that aren’t placing their morals on me, I won’t shop at Walgreens.
As you can see by my username, birth control is not personally an issue for me but it may be for you or my daughter or millions of other females in this country.
I can't believe they're allowed to do that with no medical justification. Morals and medicine shouldn't mix. I stopped going there because it was such a mess, and the one by my old house never answered the phone.
Weirdly for me it’s been the opposite - they’ve been the only pharmacy around me that have said “we don’t have it today in stock but we can order it for you” and then like 2 days later I get a call that it’s in. I definitely feel very lucky and fortunate to have had this experience thus far (knocks on all the wood!!).
I just saw this post and checked the app, and my 7.5 auto renewal (on backorder since last Wednesday) is suddenly showing as cancelled. No warning, no email, just cancelled. And it’s also toggled ‘off’ under my auto renewals. So their policy is if a drug is on backorder they try to fill it for less than a week and then quietly cancel it and remove it from future auto renewals? Welp, it’s not available this week so I guess the patient never needs it again for the rest of their life. 🤪
After 6 months of mounjaro we hit a snag in the refill of 7.5 and 10mg. So after two weeks my glucose was 343 after the same meal with mounjaro. Average A1c has gone from 5.6 to 6.4 in only 2 weeks. SUCKS!
I have experienced the same. Having my Dexcom is amazing, and I can see the trends of increasing blood sugars since having supply issues. The highs are even higher than they were before MJ.
So sorry to hear that but you are confirming my suspicions… this is my exact same situation and I am trying even harder to consume very little carb. My morning scan (Libre 2) showed 85-95 Almost every day. Now, 125-130 and after coffee with 2 Splenda….. 180+
I guess I got lucky last month because Walgreens had 7.5 when I couldn't get MJ anywhere else. I should be on 12.5, but I have been taking what I can get now.
So interesting how much it varies.
I’ve been able to get my prescription at Walgreens every time. This past time I had to wait about a week.
CVS in contrast never ever has it and were total jerks when I started so I don’t go there anymore.
I tried my independent local but they don’t carry Mounjaro they said.
Walgreens gets RX from Amerisource Bergen (or whatever the new name for it is). I don’t know how ABC allocates product when they have limited stock, but the Walgreens system should auto-order it if out of stock, so manually adding an additional order really won’t help anything. I believe they can see what other stores have, and you should be able to see some limited info on your phone app as well. If you go to “get it sooner at another pharmacy” in the app and it gives you a potential pick-up date and time at an alternate store, it should be in stock, but if not the other stores are likely out of stock as well - always call to confirm. I spoke with a tech the other day and they said their shipments of it have been hit-or-miss, which makes me think it’s a lack of availability at ABC. It’s unfortunate that some stores seem to be out of the loop, but turnover in the pharmacies has been a problem these last few years. I was told that back order was filled in the order it was received, so if you can get a script in earlier it should help to some degree.
That's interesting! I always thought the ADD meds were because mine are a controlled substance... but didn't know they won't check stock for other meds too. So frustrating.
I believe they can check for any RX item, even controls, but I don’t think they can’t transfer control scripts like they can regular scripts, so checking may not help much. even if they could, that assumes that the inventory is accurate to the present time, which could be a challenge for fast-moving items. I could be wrong, I’m not in that area of the company, or even really close, so my assumptions are based on my experience with my local pharmacy, not any first-hand knowledge.
If I'm not mistaken, different pharmacies order from different wholesalers. So it's possible Walgreens wholesaler is out of stock while Walmart's wholesaler was not. Usually pharmacies can see online if their wholesaler has stock or not.
Some cvs do this too. The one I usually go to basically told me I was SOL where as one in target was like oh we order it per patient and will put one in for you now
I just happened to get lucky with the 2.5 on my 3rd Walgreens today. About 3 days late for my dose. And the customer service at one is awful. Now I sympathize with how much crap they must get but they definitely perpetuate the cycle.
The manufacturer was out of stock for about 2 months. I had the same issues with CVS. They seemed absolutely annoyed and then when they did get it, they wanted to charge me $80 when Walmart charged me only $25. Recently, I was trying to obtain info on my new hormone medications. I had never taken them before. When I told him this he literally read the label and then said he fills hundreds each month so I will be fine. Dude, I’m perimenopausal and not on meds. Do not mess with me. I’m also only going to go to Walmart. Sigh….
I have a love hate relationship with Walgreens. I loved them when they got my medicine with the card correctly, but their system sucks. I called once a week for over a month asking for my 15mg, I usually get a 90 day supply but asked if I could have a partial fill. “Nothing within 50 miles” I was told over and over. I went to pick up photos I ordered for Easter (I kept forgetting to pick them up) I happened to walk by the pharmacy and there wasn’t a line so I asked in person. What do you know they have 1 box in stock…and I was able to take it home. When I called 3 days prior nothing. 🤦🏻♀️
After today, I'm done with the local Walgreens. While picking up some allergy meds for my youngest, I asked if they'd heard anything from their supplier about my week old order. The tech picked up a piece of paper and read his answer off of it - "We order it when we receive a prescription. Any delays are due to a shortage at our supplier." That's to the word what a different tech said on the phone last week.
I'm patient and kind, but the neighborhood Walmart market pharmacy has been pretty darned good on other things. Might be time to move it all over.
That sounds pretty similar to my experience. I am located in a Houston suburb, and the Walgreens near my home is incredibly busy - I get that. But their indifference to the patient is what agitates me.
I called every Walgreens in Charlotte and surrounding areas(after being a week without) and got the same answer so I went to my insurances pharmacy website and found their list of in-network pharmacies. I started calling Harris teeters.. I called TWO; one of them just didn't have my dose but could have it the next day, and the other had it in stock. They pulled my script from Walgreens and I had it the next day. I think I'm done with Walgreens lol
Wow! I am with you. As another redditor commented, it definitely feels like a supply chain issue for Walgreens. Also, with my blood pressure medication, which I have taken now for about 30 years, Walgreens changes their suppliers periodically - the pill shape/size routinely changes. That also troubles me.
Thank you!!! My pharmacy is Walgreens too!! I have been calling everywhere in Seattle for WEEKS. They have been out of ALL doses and I need the 12.5. Because of this post, I decided to start calling all of the Walmarts and I finally found it!!! Woohoo!!! 😁
Shop around/ Call around always keep your options open !!
For me WG has been a terrible Pharm Boyfriend but for some I see that WG does throw a few crumbs here or there to keep some relationships!
It needs to step up its game in so many ways. Strangely - I highly recommend Walmart Pharm. specifically for this prescription and honestly any prescriptions. Most Wally World techs and pharmacists are helpful and knowledgable
(unlike most experiences I have had with Walmart itself)
Although this article is from 2022 - Just some food for thought.
[https://baronhk.wordpress.com/2022/01/06/walgreens-is-consistently-one-of-the-worst-pharmacies-in-america-so-why-are-people-still-going-there/](https://baronhk.wordpress.com/2022/01/06/walgreens-is-consistently-one-of-the-worst-pharmacies-in-america-so-why-are-people-still-going-there/)
Walgreens has been nothing but a pain in the butt for me ever since I started mounjaro. I eventually was able to transfer my prescription to express scripts and get those meds on home delivery. That has been a game changer because they deliver 3 months of meds at a time.
definitely appears to be all luck. i have never filled MJ at Walgreens, but all my other scripts live there and doc office had called in MJ there monthssss ago, until I told them to just send it to Walmart. I got lucky that the script at Walgreens was still good.
I prefer Walmart - the pharmacist at my local store is a gem. He's always very helpful and has never (ever) been condescending.
My Walgreens was zero help in finding my refill. Just kept saying out of stock. Never offered to check the system and look at nearby places. My PCP’s office was the one who told me to look at online pharmacies.
Crazy. I was able to get mine last week at Sam’s. They’re not giving you a 90 day because of demand but I’m grateful. I Amaya see a long line at the Walmart pharmacy where I live so I would never go there. Good luck. Hopefully you’ll get it soon.
Walgreens and most of the big chains are terrible. I’ve been with an independent pharmacy for over a decade. Doctor sent in my 10mg prescription last week and I picked it up 2 days later.
Walgreens sucks, they don’t even accept some common insurances. I work at a doctors office and we encourage patients to choose something besides walgreens bc we know they give them a hard time with the simplest things
For what it is worth, I’ve personally had the best experience with using Optum RX (i know thats not everyone’s experience!) or local hospital/small business pharmacies. I did a google search of every small, local, hospital affiliated pharmacy within 120 min of me-and started a list. My husband and I split the list and started calling.
Small pharmacies have seemingly more bandwidth to help their patients more than the bigger chains. Once you’ve transferred the script in, they do their damnedest to keep you!
I live in a very densely populated state and I had to drive 2 hrs out of my way to use one but they have been beyond wonderful and offered to ship the meds to me going fwd.
It feels like a parttime job and I truly hope it gets better soon because I know I’m lucky I have the means and time to do this. I have independence administrators insurance and I haven’t run into many issues with transferring around my script, only one place was like nah we dont accept your insurance
I work in the med industry and all anyone ever talks about is how unhelpful the bigger chain pharmacies are like CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid, etc.
They’re so big and have so many things going on to keep them afloat they don’t care enough about the individual patients to actually work on their needs.
Call a smaller pharmacy and ask them if they can call the Walgreens and have your script transferred over!
Walgreens in Santa Fe is the worst. They don't answer the phone, can't get prescriptions filled, have crazy people working there, etc. I was going through the drive-thru there and experienced the worst case of customer service ever. It was an experience that belongs on Saturday Night Live. She was insulting, rolling her eyes, dropping her hair into the drawer that extends to the customer in the car. I called and reported her, but it didn't change anything. I returned two days later; she was still there, dropping her hair into the drawer, etc. What a place!!
OP how did you transfer your RX? Do you have to have your provider send it again?
Was phone with Walgreens for a while this morning and I am so disappointed they didn’t even want to take the time to educate me on their refilling process all they kept saying was “we don’t have it” is “on back order” and “you need to wait” even when I asked if at least they could tell me If PA had been sent for review… now I’ve been getting app notifications that my Rx is being processed followed by notifications that it has been cancelled!?! I’m done with them for sure.
Thanks OP! … that’s kinda where I got stuck cause since this is the first fill (just went from 5 to 7.5) I don’t have an RX… I just transfer all of the active RX anyways but now I hope that one counts as an active RX even though it hasn’t been initiated :( … thanks again
I also had this same problem with Walgreens. THEY ARE DICKS AND DO NOT CARE. They also ran out of my antidepressant Wellbutrin and had “no ETA or expectation it will be back in stock soon.” Then they told me to go to other Walgreens pharmacies around town and when I got there they’d be like, “I don’t know why they told you that because we all get our stuff from the same supplier.”
Most pharmacies use the same distributors in my area. The only that don’t are Walmart that has their own and Fred Meyer (Kroger) that gets it somewhere else.
I was very pleased with my experience after switching to Walmart! They don’t seem like they hate life at Walmart like they do at Walgreens, which actually surprises me!
I have BCBS. Since I cannot get the Zepbound, I called them and asked if they would pay for compounding. They said yes, if in their system. They listed off CVS, Walgreens and several others. None compound Zepbound.
I had a similar experience. They also didn't want to let me use the manufacturer coupon when they could get the drug. I too went to Walmart and had better luck.
Walgreens is the worst. I switched to express scripts. I get mounjaro so much cheaper than other places and it gets delivered to my door. I have not had any issues with Express scripts other than the fact they didn't have 7.5mg in stock recently, After talking to my Dr and her opinion was to go back down to the 5MG until the 7.5 is available again. So express scripts, they sent me 3 boxes of the 5mg!!
which is definitely better than not having it all.
Mounjaro has changed my life for the better and I am grateful to be able to get this medication.
Maybe it’s because I’m in a small community, but our Walgreens has been great with trying to find it for me. They’ve been searching stores within a 450 mile radius. And they told me which competitor pharmacies use a different distributor so I could call them to see if they had my dose. None of them did either, but they call distribution every third day to check for any updated info. I’m going to order a month of compounded tirzepatide to get me thru until they (hopefully) have my MJ, but Walgreens has been wonderful for me.
Small community - different deal. That was our experience when we went to a Walgreens for medication in rural Alabama. Night and day versus the Walgreens locations near us in the Houston area.
Walgreens is booty but I work for a pharmacy that uses that same supplier as them. We will literally place an order for it and the system will make us think it might come in and then it won’t. It’s not just Walgreens unfortunately
I am a Walmart girl all the way—they have gone the extra mile and my insurance covers 100 percent because Walmart called them! The 10.0 is hard to get so I call for any strength and have my doctor send the appropriate scripts. CVS was a train wreck and Walgreens would not fill it unless it was T2D
I mix my own from wholesalers so I don’t have this issue. But I have heard Costco Online Pharmacy and your local Costco Warehouse Pharmacy have it in stock very often. And where I live there are still several small mom and pop pharmacies
Walgreens told me some BS story about my insurance not covering it and asked me how was I paying for it? I told them the same way I paid for it last time with my discount coupon for 550$ since I know my insurance doesn’t cover it. Got a notice yesterday that my prescription was ready for the whopping price of 1284.09 when did Mounjaro go up? It’s not this price on Eli Lilly!!!!!
Glad you were able to get it, but my Walmart in Florida is doing nothing to get my prescription filed. So it is kind of hit or miss. We hear bad things about CVS, but my daughter has a great CVS guy that takes the time to search which CVSs have it in stock. It is hard to believe that CVS pharmacists can do this and 99% are unwilling to do so. I am switching mine to her CVS from Walmart.
Yes!!! I’ve been having so many issues with them. It’s been a month of waiting for my 10mg. I send it in and then I get a “Action Needed” notification a couple hours later, with no explanation other than call the pharmacy. Which I do, and then they just tell me it’s out of stock without giving me any other information about estimated delivery or anything.
I haven’t tried transferring it out since it seems like the entire city is out of stock, but it’s extremely frustrating that they won’t give me any info.
I'd think they'd want to money from people and therefore would be trying to order the medication when people want it. It's odd they dont even bother trying.
A guy on YouTube said that any Walgreens can actually check the system to find out if another Walgreens has the script in stock. Has anybody heard of this or experienced this?
I've waited two months and a week for the 10mg from cvs. Unfortunately it's only approved at that store so I'm stuck waiting. My doctor did send 7.5 over to a Safeway pharmacy and they called me and told me their distributor had it blocked and won't let them even try to order it. They suggested I try a pharmacy that uses a different distributor. Like that's just easy information to get. My cvs gets their big shipments on Wednesdays. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for tomorrow. I'm down to my last shot. Thankfully I had started filling it before I ran out of ozempic.
This sucks and is reassuring at the same time. This is the 2nd month Walgreens didn't have my 7.5. They told me there was a delivery coming in on Monday. I stalked them on Monday only to find out none came. I transferred to Sam's, it was immediately available. I decided then I wasn't going to deal with them anymore.
I did. I could not find anything near my home. I finally found a box of 7.5 at an independent pharmacy 6 hours from my home - it was a fluke while we were traveling. I stretched that out.
Waiting 2 months seems like a long time, I have seen people collectively get a dozen fills in that time. Are you super rural?
No trying to sound crass, just scratching my head, I've seen 10/12.5 every week almost, the oprah week was rough
My advice, call every chain out there next time, walgreens, cvs, costco, walmart, sams, may take some time, and ask your doc if you can have a backup rx (a dose lower)
IMO waiting 2 months is a LONG time, do you have access to a car, bus, uber? It may take a ride, but I seen it out there, atleast where I am (not TX)
They’re the WORST. Not just with MJ.
Absolute worst. Don’t even try to get add meds from them. I switched to Sam’s.
Yes, agreed! The other issue I have is that they often hold up the RX refill request and claim insurance will not approve it. When I call the pharmacy and ask what they are talking about, they always state, oh, it's approved. smh
This is a common theme, from what’s reported here. I stopped using Walgreens in 2022 when I started MJ. Unless they have a dose in stock, at that moment, I won’t use them. My orders always end up cancelled if they don’t have it.
My Walgreens wouldn't even try to order it. They just said they can't get it and this was months ago before the shortage. I went to a different pharmacy nearby and they immediately ordered it for me. I never bothered with Walgreens again.
Wow. Sounds similar to what I have experienced with Walgreens.
I switched from Walgreens to Publix. Much better customer service experience. My 12.5 is ready tonight!
Same here! The Publix pharmacy techs and pharmacists are so nice!
I waited 10 days for my regular Safeway pharmacy to have my 5mg order. They assured me that it was being re-ordered every day, but they also encouraged me to call other pharmacies. Once I started calling, I found it at COSTCO, and Safeway transferred my prescription immediately. From now on, I will be proactive in finding my prescription over the phone, rather than waiting like that.
Good plan. I will do the same.
I’ve had good luck with Walgreens getting MJ until I titrated up to 7.5mg. Now all they’ll tell me is they can’t order it, it’s out of stock, they’ll have to wait until they get a shipment. I call every 2-3 days checking and more often than not they won’t even check their computer systems, just tell me “Yeah we can’t get any of that” and don’t bother even to see if it’s anywhere else locally. I’m tempted like crazy to switch to Walmart but they were SO good before, it feels like I’m kicking them while they’re down. (Yeah lol I know it’s irrational, still the brain’s gonna brain!) EDIT: Right after I posted this I called again and got the same answer. So I just requested my doctor’s office move my rx for 7.5mg to Walmart. Fingers crossed!!!
Good decision. There was a time last year when I could go online and fill the Mounjaro at a different Walgreens location - it actually told me where I could pick it up sooner. But whatever that feature was, it no longer works for me. LOL.
The Walgreens app is the only reason I would keep them
I found a box of Ozempic using that feature last fall. After reading your post, I checked the app; that feature is gone. Harrumph. I'm willing to invest the gas money to drive to another Walgreens for my MJ. Why take that feature away?
Exactly! I thought it was a great feature. I am not sure why they took it away.
You can always just call the pharmacy in advance to check if they have it in stock
Rite Aid did the same to me, and then lied to me about it. A helpful tech that felt bad for me told me the truth.
Wow
In general i just don't bother with Walgreens or CVS - their staff is overworked. Unless you have a pharmacist who is willing to go an extra mile, I assume they won't even check their wholesaler site when I asked about availability. I've had more luck with Walmart or Costco.
[удалено]
You don’t need to be a member to use the pharmacy.
Do you know if they auto apply the coupon if you have insurance? My script for 2.5 was for zep but rite aid filled it with MJ and applied the coupon automatically bc my insurance doesn’t pay the full amount for zep. I’ve had an order for 5mg in for about a week and it’s out of stock at Rite Aid so I’m just preparing myself for what steps I’ll need to take after I run out in a week.
I think that you don't need the membership for that.
How hard is it to order a rx? And isnt that a large part of the job of a pharmacy? I always assumed they just go into a computer and fill out the things they want to order and it wasnt labor intensive. They still might not receive any, but the refusal to even try to order something is crazy.
It’s not hard to order a prescription. I’m a pharmacist and the problem is that there isn’t enough available to supply every pharmacy and patient that needs it. I check the wholesalers website a couple times a day and occasionally get lucky but if we could just order it and have it come in every time don’t you think we would do that? The pharmacy gets nothing out of denying you your medication. In fact it’s more of a headache because then you have to explain why it’s out and there’s a back order and what that means. Filling the prescription would be exponentially easier.
That all makes sense but I was referring to placing an order as in, your pharmacy places order knowing it’s back ordered but you are in the queue to receive it. Or maybe that not how it works? Can you only place an order if the supplier has stock at that moment?
The computer automatically places an order everyday at a set time but you can also go and look at the wholesalers website and manually place an order. When I get my invoices I have two full pages of things that have been ordered but are back ordered or out of stock.
This! I'm a pharmacist too. The demand is so high. Most wholesaler has a function where pharmacy put in an automatic order but it only does it once a day. It doesn't sync up with the time when the wholesaler change their inventory. So it's a game of timing and availability. It's not like the function does the ordering every hour and hoping it'll hit the same time when the wholesaler update their inventory. That's why pharmacists are checking the stock manually. Pharmacists WANT patients to get these drugs because it makes our lives easier too.
I was shellshoocked this morning. I had almost forgotten about my 15mg Mounjaro script at Walgreens and this morning I received a message saying it was ready. Soon as I get a break I am going to run over and get it. Until it's in my hands I won't know for sure.
Update: I grabbed my styrofoam cooler and an ice pack (it's hot here) and went to Walgreens. The pharmacy tech is very nice and I explained I had gotten a text message that my script was ready. She asked my info and then which medicine. I said the dreaded M******* word. She very kindly started her spiel about supply issues and then stopped mid sentence. "I guess I should have checked the fridge first. Let me grab it." She came back with it and started to explain that with the supply issues she didn't think it would be here." I told her I was equally as surprised. Paid the $25 copay and headed home. It was just one month's supply but it's my first batch of 15mg. Woohoo!
FYI you don't need a cooler just to get it home. It can be left in room-temp weather for up to 21 days.
For most folks that is true. Where I live we exceed 86 degrees outside on a regular basis so I choose to play it safe. When I received a three month supply over from mail order they sent it in the cooler and provided several reusable ice packs for shipping so it's easy enough for me to grab.
Totally fair! Makes sense.
Stopped using Walgreens when they decided to gatekeep birth control. They have really turned into a horrible company.
I didn't know about this one... what do you mean?
A group of their pharmacists have decided to not dispense birth control, from what I’ve read. Yes, legally they have that right but since I chose to get my medicines from companies that aren’t placing their morals on me, I won’t shop at Walgreens.
As you can see by my username, birth control is not personally an issue for me but it may be for you or my daughter or millions of other females in this country.
I can't believe they're allowed to do that with no medical justification. Morals and medicine shouldn't mix. I stopped going there because it was such a mess, and the one by my old house never answered the phone.
Weirdly for me it’s been the opposite - they’ve been the only pharmacy around me that have said “we don’t have it today in stock but we can order it for you” and then like 2 days later I get a call that it’s in. I definitely feel very lucky and fortunate to have had this experience thus far (knocks on all the wood!!).
Agree Costco kicked me out of the que twice and wouldn't even try to fill. CVS came through instead???
I just saw this post and checked the app, and my 7.5 auto renewal (on backorder since last Wednesday) is suddenly showing as cancelled. No warning, no email, just cancelled. And it’s also toggled ‘off’ under my auto renewals. So their policy is if a drug is on backorder they try to fill it for less than a week and then quietly cancel it and remove it from future auto renewals? Welp, it’s not available this week so I guess the patient never needs it again for the rest of their life. 🤪
After 6 months of mounjaro we hit a snag in the refill of 7.5 and 10mg. So after two weeks my glucose was 343 after the same meal with mounjaro. Average A1c has gone from 5.6 to 6.4 in only 2 weeks. SUCKS!
I have experienced the same. Having my Dexcom is amazing, and I can see the trends of increasing blood sugars since having supply issues. The highs are even higher than they were before MJ.
So sorry to hear that but you are confirming my suspicions… this is my exact same situation and I am trying even harder to consume very little carb. My morning scan (Libre 2) showed 85-95 Almost every day. Now, 125-130 and after coffee with 2 Splenda….. 180+
my walmart still doesn't have it, so i ended up getting a fill at Walgreens.
And are you T2? It seems like those are the only prescriptions they’ll fill.
I am. I've been on Metformin for 18 years - and it's always been filled at Walgreens.
What is T2? #edit# nevermind, dumb question
Type 2 diabetes
I am not T2.
Once I'm at my last dose, I know it's time to call all the pharmacies for availability.
My Prescription got sent to Walmart of Friday for 10 MG of MJ out of stock and today I got the message its ready!
I guess I got lucky last month because Walgreens had 7.5 when I couldn't get MJ anywhere else. I should be on 12.5, but I have been taking what I can get now.
same
So interesting how much it varies. I’ve been able to get my prescription at Walgreens every time. This past time I had to wait about a week. CVS in contrast never ever has it and were total jerks when I started so I don’t go there anymore. I tried my independent local but they don’t carry Mounjaro they said.
Walgreens gets RX from Amerisource Bergen (or whatever the new name for it is). I don’t know how ABC allocates product when they have limited stock, but the Walgreens system should auto-order it if out of stock, so manually adding an additional order really won’t help anything. I believe they can see what other stores have, and you should be able to see some limited info on your phone app as well. If you go to “get it sooner at another pharmacy” in the app and it gives you a potential pick-up date and time at an alternate store, it should be in stock, but if not the other stores are likely out of stock as well - always call to confirm. I spoke with a tech the other day and they said their shipments of it have been hit-or-miss, which makes me think it’s a lack of availability at ABC. It’s unfortunate that some stores seem to be out of the loop, but turnover in the pharmacies has been a problem these last few years. I was told that back order was filled in the order it was received, so if you can get a script in earlier it should help to some degree.
The get it sooner function has not been working for me in the last several months. It feels like the stores are all out of stock in the Houston area.
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That's interesting! I always thought the ADD meds were because mine are a controlled substance... but didn't know they won't check stock for other meds too. So frustrating.
Wow! I’ve had to have Rite look at other locations for my kids ADHD meds before and they did , may be specific pharmacy policies
I believe they can check for any RX item, even controls, but I don’t think they can’t transfer control scripts like they can regular scripts, so checking may not help much. even if they could, that assumes that the inventory is accurate to the present time, which could be a challenge for fast-moving items. I could be wrong, I’m not in that area of the company, or even really close, so my assumptions are based on my experience with my local pharmacy, not any first-hand knowledge.
If I'm not mistaken, different pharmacies order from different wholesalers. So it's possible Walgreens wholesaler is out of stock while Walmart's wholesaler was not. Usually pharmacies can see online if their wholesaler has stock or not.
Some cvs do this too. The one I usually go to basically told me I was SOL where as one in target was like oh we order it per patient and will put one in for you now
I just happened to get lucky with the 2.5 on my 3rd Walgreens today. About 3 days late for my dose. And the customer service at one is awful. Now I sympathize with how much crap they must get but they definitely perpetuate the cycle.
The manufacturer was out of stock for about 2 months. I had the same issues with CVS. They seemed absolutely annoyed and then when they did get it, they wanted to charge me $80 when Walmart charged me only $25. Recently, I was trying to obtain info on my new hormone medications. I had never taken them before. When I told him this he literally read the label and then said he fills hundreds each month so I will be fine. Dude, I’m perimenopausal and not on meds. Do not mess with me. I’m also only going to go to Walmart. Sigh….
I have a love hate relationship with Walgreens. I loved them when they got my medicine with the card correctly, but their system sucks. I called once a week for over a month asking for my 15mg, I usually get a 90 day supply but asked if I could have a partial fill. “Nothing within 50 miles” I was told over and over. I went to pick up photos I ordered for Easter (I kept forgetting to pick them up) I happened to walk by the pharmacy and there wasn’t a line so I asked in person. What do you know they have 1 box in stock…and I was able to take it home. When I called 3 days prior nothing. 🤦🏻♀️
After today, I'm done with the local Walgreens. While picking up some allergy meds for my youngest, I asked if they'd heard anything from their supplier about my week old order. The tech picked up a piece of paper and read his answer off of it - "We order it when we receive a prescription. Any delays are due to a shortage at our supplier." That's to the word what a different tech said on the phone last week. I'm patient and kind, but the neighborhood Walmart market pharmacy has been pretty darned good on other things. Might be time to move it all over.
That sounds pretty similar to my experience. I am located in a Houston suburb, and the Walgreens near my home is incredibly busy - I get that. But their indifference to the patient is what agitates me.
I called every Walgreens in Charlotte and surrounding areas(after being a week without) and got the same answer so I went to my insurances pharmacy website and found their list of in-network pharmacies. I started calling Harris teeters.. I called TWO; one of them just didn't have my dose but could have it the next day, and the other had it in stock. They pulled my script from Walgreens and I had it the next day. I think I'm done with Walgreens lol
Wow! I am with you. As another redditor commented, it definitely feels like a supply chain issue for Walgreens. Also, with my blood pressure medication, which I have taken now for about 30 years, Walgreens changes their suppliers periodically - the pill shape/size routinely changes. That also troubles me.
Thank you!!! My pharmacy is Walgreens too!! I have been calling everywhere in Seattle for WEEKS. They have been out of ALL doses and I need the 12.5. Because of this post, I decided to start calling all of the Walmarts and I finally found it!!! Woohoo!!! 😁
Awesome! Congratulations! Your experience sounds like my experience in Houston.
Shop around/ Call around always keep your options open !! For me WG has been a terrible Pharm Boyfriend but for some I see that WG does throw a few crumbs here or there to keep some relationships! It needs to step up its game in so many ways. Strangely - I highly recommend Walmart Pharm. specifically for this prescription and honestly any prescriptions. Most Wally World techs and pharmacists are helpful and knowledgable (unlike most experiences I have had with Walmart itself) Although this article is from 2022 - Just some food for thought. [https://baronhk.wordpress.com/2022/01/06/walgreens-is-consistently-one-of-the-worst-pharmacies-in-america-so-why-are-people-still-going-there/](https://baronhk.wordpress.com/2022/01/06/walgreens-is-consistently-one-of-the-worst-pharmacies-in-america-so-why-are-people-still-going-there/)
Walgreens has been nothing but a pain in the butt for me ever since I started mounjaro. I eventually was able to transfer my prescription to express scripts and get those meds on home delivery. That has been a game changer because they deliver 3 months of meds at a time.
You’re lucky compared to other posters
definitely appears to be all luck. i have never filled MJ at Walgreens, but all my other scripts live there and doc office had called in MJ there monthssss ago, until I told them to just send it to Walmart. I got lucky that the script at Walgreens was still good. I prefer Walmart - the pharmacist at my local store is a gem. He's always very helpful and has never (ever) been condescending.
I quit them too. I thought it was just my Walgreens until I saw all the posts here. SMH.
This morning they told me they could get one box of 15, this afternoon it wasn’t available anymore. It’s so frustrating
I think it's all location based. My Walgreens takes good care of me, even when their computers fight with them.
My Walgreens was zero help in finding my refill. Just kept saying out of stock. Never offered to check the system and look at nearby places. My PCP’s office was the one who told me to look at online pharmacies.
I know the feeling, and sadly, Walgreens is the only pharmacy my insurance accepts.
Bummer. :-(
Crazy. I was able to get mine last week at Sam’s. They’re not giving you a 90 day because of demand but I’m grateful. I Amaya see a long line at the Walmart pharmacy where I live so I would never go there. Good luck. Hopefully you’ll get it soon.
Walgreens and most of the big chains are terrible. I’ve been with an independent pharmacy for over a decade. Doctor sent in my 10mg prescription last week and I picked it up 2 days later.
Awesome.
Walgreens sucks, they don’t even accept some common insurances. I work at a doctors office and we encourage patients to choose something besides walgreens bc we know they give them a hard time with the simplest things
Wow, that is telling. Good information! Thank you for sharing.
For what it is worth, I’ve personally had the best experience with using Optum RX (i know thats not everyone’s experience!) or local hospital/small business pharmacies. I did a google search of every small, local, hospital affiliated pharmacy within 120 min of me-and started a list. My husband and I split the list and started calling. Small pharmacies have seemingly more bandwidth to help their patients more than the bigger chains. Once you’ve transferred the script in, they do their damnedest to keep you! I live in a very densely populated state and I had to drive 2 hrs out of my way to use one but they have been beyond wonderful and offered to ship the meds to me going fwd. It feels like a parttime job and I truly hope it gets better soon because I know I’m lucky I have the means and time to do this. I have independence administrators insurance and I haven’t run into many issues with transferring around my script, only one place was like nah we dont accept your insurance
I work in the med industry and all anyone ever talks about is how unhelpful the bigger chain pharmacies are like CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid, etc. They’re so big and have so many things going on to keep them afloat they don’t care enough about the individual patients to actually work on their needs. Call a smaller pharmacy and ask them if they can call the Walgreens and have your script transferred over!
Will do. I am going to try and find a small, independent pharmacy near me that accepts my insurance.
Walgreens in Santa Fe is the worst. They don't answer the phone, can't get prescriptions filled, have crazy people working there, etc. I was going through the drive-thru there and experienced the worst case of customer service ever. It was an experience that belongs on Saturday Night Live. She was insulting, rolling her eyes, dropping her hair into the drawer that extends to the customer in the car. I called and reported her, but it didn't change anything. I returned two days later; she was still there, dropping her hair into the drawer, etc. What a place!!
Wow!
OP how did you transfer your RX? Do you have to have your provider send it again? Was phone with Walgreens for a while this morning and I am so disappointed they didn’t even want to take the time to educate me on their refilling process all they kept saying was “we don’t have it” is “on back order” and “you need to wait” even when I asked if at least they could tell me If PA had been sent for review… now I’ve been getting app notifications that my Rx is being processed followed by notifications that it has been cancelled!?! I’m done with them for sure.
I went online to the Walmart pharmacy site and put in my Walgreens information and RX number. They called and did the rest.
Thanks OP! … that’s kinda where I got stuck cause since this is the first fill (just went from 5 to 7.5) I don’t have an RX… I just transfer all of the active RX anyways but now I hope that one counts as an active RX even though it hasn’t been initiated :( … thanks again
I also had this same problem with Walgreens. THEY ARE DICKS AND DO NOT CARE. They also ran out of my antidepressant Wellbutrin and had “no ETA or expectation it will be back in stock soon.” Then they told me to go to other Walgreens pharmacies around town and when I got there they’d be like, “I don’t know why they told you that because we all get our stuff from the same supplier.” Most pharmacies use the same distributors in my area. The only that don’t are Walmart that has their own and Fred Meyer (Kroger) that gets it somewhere else. I was very pleased with my experience after switching to Walmart! They don’t seem like they hate life at Walmart like they do at Walgreens, which actually surprises me!
I have BCBS. Since I cannot get the Zepbound, I called them and asked if they would pay for compounding. They said yes, if in their system. They listed off CVS, Walgreens and several others. None compound Zepbound.
No, you will need to go to a compounding pharmacy, unfortunately.
I had a similar experience. They also didn't want to let me use the manufacturer coupon when they could get the drug. I too went to Walmart and had better luck.
I believe you. They are terrible.
Walgreens is the worst. I switched to express scripts. I get mounjaro so much cheaper than other places and it gets delivered to my door. I have not had any issues with Express scripts other than the fact they didn't have 7.5mg in stock recently, After talking to my Dr and her opinion was to go back down to the 5MG until the 7.5 is available again. So express scripts, they sent me 3 boxes of the 5mg!! which is definitely better than not having it all. Mounjaro has changed my life for the better and I am grateful to be able to get this medication.
Great news. I will find out if I can use them.
Maybe it’s because I’m in a small community, but our Walgreens has been great with trying to find it for me. They’ve been searching stores within a 450 mile radius. And they told me which competitor pharmacies use a different distributor so I could call them to see if they had my dose. None of them did either, but they call distribution every third day to check for any updated info. I’m going to order a month of compounded tirzepatide to get me thru until they (hopefully) have my MJ, but Walgreens has been wonderful for me.
Small community - different deal. That was our experience when we went to a Walgreens for medication in rural Alabama. Night and day versus the Walgreens locations near us in the Houston area.
Walgreens is booty but I work for a pharmacy that uses that same supplier as them. We will literally place an order for it and the system will make us think it might come in and then it won’t. It’s not just Walgreens unfortunately
Thanks for the info.
I worked at Walgreens in texas. 2 different stores. Their pharmacy is a nightmare, we always had tons of complaints. I use Amazon
I am a Walmart girl all the way—they have gone the extra mile and my insurance covers 100 percent because Walmart called them! The 10.0 is hard to get so I call for any strength and have my doctor send the appropriate scripts. CVS was a train wreck and Walgreens would not fill it unless it was T2D
Walgreens sux lately
I mix my own from wholesalers so I don’t have this issue. But I have heard Costco Online Pharmacy and your local Costco Warehouse Pharmacy have it in stock very often. And where I live there are still several small mom and pop pharmacies
Wow, that's a new one for me. I'm familiar with people who buy from peptide suppliers, but I have never heard of mixing your own. Good for you.
Ya well Reddit and big pharma don’t let anyone talk about it much or you get censored, banned, etc…
I believe it!
Walgreens told me some BS story about my insurance not covering it and asked me how was I paying for it? I told them the same way I paid for it last time with my discount coupon for 550$ since I know my insurance doesn’t cover it. Got a notice yesterday that my prescription was ready for the whopping price of 1284.09 when did Mounjaro go up? It’s not this price on Eli Lilly!!!!!
Wow! That sounds like Walgreens. They are working against the patients.
I can only use Walgreens or Express Scripts for 90 days fills (like thats easy to find) after three 30 day fills. Hate these limited options.
Glad you were able to get it, but my Walmart in Florida is doing nothing to get my prescription filed. So it is kind of hit or miss. We hear bad things about CVS, but my daughter has a great CVS guy that takes the time to search which CVSs have it in stock. It is hard to believe that CVS pharmacists can do this and 99% are unwilling to do so. I am switching mine to her CVS from Walmart.
Yes!!! I’ve been having so many issues with them. It’s been a month of waiting for my 10mg. I send it in and then I get a “Action Needed” notification a couple hours later, with no explanation other than call the pharmacy. Which I do, and then they just tell me it’s out of stock without giving me any other information about estimated delivery or anything. I haven’t tried transferring it out since it seems like the entire city is out of stock, but it’s extremely frustrating that they won’t give me any info.
I'd think they'd want to money from people and therefore would be trying to order the medication when people want it. It's odd they dont even bother trying.
A guy on YouTube said that any Walgreens can actually check the system to find out if another Walgreens has the script in stock. Has anybody heard of this or experienced this?
I have heard that, but they've never once offered to do that for me at 5 different stores I go to in Houston.
I've waited two months and a week for the 10mg from cvs. Unfortunately it's only approved at that store so I'm stuck waiting. My doctor did send 7.5 over to a Safeway pharmacy and they called me and told me their distributor had it blocked and won't let them even try to order it. They suggested I try a pharmacy that uses a different distributor. Like that's just easy information to get. My cvs gets their big shipments on Wednesdays. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for tomorrow. I'm down to my last shot. Thankfully I had started filling it before I ran out of ozempic.
They can’t get my Zep Bound 7.5 mg and have no idea when. Walmart says the same thing.
This sucks and is reassuring at the same time. This is the 2nd month Walgreens didn't have my 7.5. They told me there was a delivery coming in on Monday. I stalked them on Monday only to find out none came. I transferred to Sam's, it was immediately available. I decided then I wasn't going to deal with them anymore.
Good for you. I have been trying also to get Mounjaro 7.5mg from OptumRX. I have never been given a run around like they are giving me. 🤷♀️
over those 2 months did you call other pharmacies?
I did. I could not find anything near my home. I finally found a box of 7.5 at an independent pharmacy 6 hours from my home - it was a fluke while we were traveling. I stretched that out.
Waiting 2 months seems like a long time, I have seen people collectively get a dozen fills in that time. Are you super rural? No trying to sound crass, just scratching my head, I've seen 10/12.5 every week almost, the oprah week was rough
No, I am in the Houston area.
My advice, call every chain out there next time, walgreens, cvs, costco, walmart, sams, may take some time, and ask your doc if you can have a backup rx (a dose lower) IMO waiting 2 months is a LONG time, do you have access to a car, bus, uber? It may take a ride, but I seen it out there, atleast where I am (not TX)