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[–][deleted] 35 points36 points  (0 children)

TIL Companies mark up products for their own profit.

[–]D3SPiTE 14 points15 points  (0 children)

I'd recommend not taking a new medication on a day when you have tons to do. Try it out on a normal day because if they give you a headache or some other negative response you could end up ruining a day.

[–]danielsun 10 points11 points  (0 children)

This is true for pretty much every synthetic drug that we talk about here on /r/Nootropics

-Wakalert is indeed .28 cents each per 150mg.

/u/gwern states about Modafinil that costs of getting scripts to US / UK customers goes from $2 a pill to $12 a pill. Which is obviously ridiculous if you have access to generics. But ever further if you are buying generics for at the cheapest on https://mymodafinil.net/buy-modafinil/ is $1.39 a pill.

Then I was curious and looked up all these other medications that are considered "nootropics". Turns out that people on this subreddit, www.longecity.org , or anyone who has a interest in nootropics for experimenting with designing a optimum formula for their mental health is either prohibited to experiment based on cost or getting Royally FUCKED !

Here are my results of the real cost of some of the pharmacy nootropics before mark up.

Dementia and Alzheimer's

  • Selegiline in costs .06 cents each for 5mg
  • Rasagiline costs .08 for each .05mg, .15 for 1mg
  • Nicergoline costs .08 for each 5mg, .44 for 30mg
  • Cabergoline costs .42 for each .25mg
  • Hydergine costs .35 for each 1mg
  • Galantamine costs .22 for 4mg, .37 for 8mg
  • Memantine costs .09 for for 5mg
  • Rivastigmine costs .07 for 1.5mg
  • Donepezil costs .11 for 5mg
  • Lucidril Aka Acefen costs .02 for 100mg

Parkinsons and Nervous System

  • Ropinirole costs .03 for .25mg
  • Piribedil costs .37 for 50mg
  • Carbidopa+ Levodopa aka Syndopa costs .03 for 110mg

Anxiolytic / Anxiety or Depression

  • Buspirone costs .02 for 10mg
  • Tianeptine costs .11 for 12.5mg
  • Tramadol costs .04 for 50mg
  • Venlafaxine cost .02 for 25mg
  • Fluoxetine costs .02 for 20mg
  • Bupropion Hydrochloride ... costs .05 for 10mg, .12 for 150mg
  • Topiramate costs .04 for 25mg
  • Citalopram costs .04 for 10mg
  • Etizolam costs .06 for .5mg

Other

  • Desmopressin in costs .53 for each .01mg, .78 for .02mg
  • Phenytoin costs rounds to .01 per 100mg
  • Arcalion aka Salbutamine cost .26 per 200mg
  • Losartan costs .03 per 50mg
  • Candesartan costs .04 per 4mg
  • Simvastatin .018 per 5mg
  • Naltrexone .64 per 50mg
  • Gabapentin .11 per 100mg
  • Phenytoin .01 per 100mg

Now, these are all in USD (.100 = $1) as of Today (Feb 11th, 2013).

I made this partly out of curiosity, partly out of ocd, partly as a possible business market analysis, partly as a transparency that I believe people should know about. Maybe /r/Nootropics very own /user/diabettis would be interested in adding this to Noophound: Nootropic Price checker

I am interested in knowing what other Synthetic / Bio engineered "nootropics" that I have left out. And how you feel about this post.

[–]throwawaythebelt 10 points11 points  (4 children)

Do you live in india?

[–]lulzage[S] 5 points6 points  (3 children)

yeah

[–]loercase 0 points1 point  (2 children)

You probably didn't need a prescription then.

[–]lulzage[S] 0 points1 point  (1 child)

The pharmacy guy refused to sell me the tabs without a prescription slip. :(

[–][deleted] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

check the next pharmacy then...i have found it openly for sale at about 1 out of every 5 i try in delhi. i've yet to find it in HP where i live, but a trip to delhi for procurement is cheaper than buying online.

[–]throwawaythebelt 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I wonder what they cost a distributor in bulk?

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points  (2 children)

The problem is not the cost of the pills. The problem is the shipping costs (minimum $14-24 depending on where you are shipping). And the risk of seizure by customs and refunds for other reasons.

On top of this, you add labour of packaging the pills in envelopes, and printing the addresses, and going to the post office, and standing in long queues, and filling out the customs form and then sending the tracking codes to the buyers. It is extremely time consuming and cannot be automated.

And then there is the time that you have to put in for customer support and answering questions.

And then you add your profit margin.

And you realize why online pharmacies charge $2 per pill.

(Full disclosure: I run http://medsforbitcoin.com - and charge way lower than $2 per pill. My prices are pretty rock bottom and just earn me a sustainable profit.)

[–]lulzage[S] 0 points1 point  (1 child)

are you a vendor with the same name on SR ?

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes.

[–]I_Aint_Gay 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Where do you live? Also many people in the US don't have medical insurance at the moment, so this still comes out cheaper when factoring in doctors visits prescription costs.

[–]darthn3ss 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Factor in shipping costs and risk and I'd say it's a fair amount of markup.

[–]keflexxx 1 point2 points  (0 children)

this isn't news; the cost in rupees is printed on every blister pack

[–]joethebeast 3 points4 points  (5 children)

To be honest, I'm just glad to be able to order them in the first place. It's hundreds of dollars cheaper than what it would cost through a "legitimate" pharmacy in the US. The irony? Online pharma = capitalism, US sanctioned pharma = socialism.

[–][deleted] 3 points4 points  (3 children)

Wouldn't US sanctioned pharma just be "regulated capitalism" while online pharma is "pure capitalism"?

Socialism would be if the government saw that you needed these drugs and helped you pay for them. But seeing as how you don't have a prescription so you can't actually buy them at a drug store here, it's just a regulation thing.

[–][deleted]  (1 child)

[deleted]

    [–][deleted] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    Ah, so you mean just the retail price being different because over there whoever wants to make it can, as opposed to here where it's just one or two huge corporations charging out the ass?

    [–]joethebeast 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    Yeah, I was totally inaccurate. It's a free country.

    [–]VoyPerdiendo1 1 point2 points  (0 children)

    Online pharma = capitalism, US sanctioned pharma = corporatism.

    le fixd