Asda to sell cheap IVF drugs
The supermarket giant could charge up to £820 less than competing pharmacies
The supermarket chain Asda has claimed that it plans to sell IVF drugs at cost price to customers.
The hormones to accompany one IVF treatment cycle will have a price tag of £1,174.41, said Asda. According to the supermarket, the eight drugs, which are a mix of hormones and sprays to stimulate hormone production, can retail for almost £2,000. Tesco, one of the biggest rivals, is said to charge nearly £1,600.
The move to sell the IVF drugs and not make a profit is part of Asda’s plan to position itself as Britain’s most competitive pharmacy.
“We know that an IVF postcode lottery means a considerable number of women will have to pay for additional cycles of treatment and lots of customers have spoken to us about the issue. IVF is extremely expensive,” commented Asda pharmacist John Evans.
The Metro reports that all except two NHS trusts offer free IVF treatment, and this can vary between one and three cycles, which means half of all the IVF treatments that happen in the UK each year (there are 40,000) have to be funded by the couples.
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Sainsbury’s will price-match for those with a prescription, and has stated, “We aim to be competitive.”
“If they can do then I think it’s great for patients. People getting infertility treatments don’t get many breaks,” said fertility expert Dr Allan Pacey, from University of Sheffield. However, Dr Pacey also noted that couples might get better deals from their clinic, as they often have good wholesale deals.
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