Free Diabetic Supplies

In most states prescription medications and supplies are exempt from sales tax.  After all, these days, prescriptions are expensive enough without adding an extra 5% to 10% to the total.  Even with insurance and discounts, some prescriptions are just plain expensive.

Recently the father of a young girl who had Type 1 or Juvenile Diabetes went to pick up his daughter’s medication and supplies.  He was charged tax on some of the supplies because he was told that these weren’t prescription items.

Imagine having a blood glucose meter and having to buy lancets and test strips, only to be taxed on the lancets and strips.  Also, imagine having to buy syringes for insulin and being taxed on those.  Since these items can quickly add up to well over $100.00, the tax, even at 6% amounts to $6.00 that could be better used elsewhere.  Anyone with diabetes (or with a loved one with diabetes) knows exactly how this goes and is quite familiar with the cost of supplies and medication.

Well, this particular father talked to the pharmacy until he was blue in the face.  He brought in a signed note from his daughter’s doctor listing all the medications and supplies she needed.  He talked to the pharmacy manager.  He talked to the store manager.  He got no assistance or relief.

Fortunately, he didn’t give up.  He went to his state’s Department of Revenue and got information from them stating that he did not need a prescription to get the sales tax exemption for diabetes supplies; he only needed a doctor’s note which he had from his daughter’s endocrinologist.

After fighting for weeks, he finally got some positive response – not because the pharmacy listened to him, but because the local news networks caught wind of the story and started circulating it, forcing the pharmacy to change their opinion and their approach.

This is not an isolated story, and the pharmacy involved is a huge national pharmacy.  If you have diabetes and are being charged state tax for any of your supplies, check with your state’s Department of Revenue to make sure whether or not you should be exempt. 

It is hard enough to deal with an ongoing disease such as diabetes without having to spend extra money on necessary supplies due to pharmacies that do not understand or will not uphold the law.