More Kroger banners offer $4 generics, but some say list is limited

Fred Meyer and QFC stores in Oregon and Washington are following in the footsteps of such major retailers as Wal-Mart, and Target in charging $4 for prescriptions of generic drugs, according to published reports.

Generics usually sell for an average of $20, but the chains, both Kroger companies, are offering $4 for a list of more than 150 medications, according to published reports. Among them are generic versions of Amoxil, Prozac and Claritin. The chain also is selling birth-control pills and fertility drugs for $9.

Some experts, however, are not fully convinced that Kroger’s new initiative will prove cheaper for consumers, as they state that the drugs that most people use today are not included in the 150 it is offering.

“It’s more of a marketing ploy than anything else,” claims Jim Thompson, executive director of the Oregon State Pharmacy Association. “This will save you money if you happen to have prescriptions for one or more of those drugs, but most people will find that they don’t. Most people will be lucky if they find that they have one of them.”