Rx: split decisions
Stafford applied these criteria to 265 of the most commonly prescribed medications, and by the time he finished he was left with just 48 that were good candidates for splitting. But with these pills the savings were striking. Patients could save 33 percent on Lipitor, 46 percent on the antidepressant Paxil, and 41 percent on Klonopin, an antianxiety drug.
So done right, and done carefully, splitting can be an important strategy for managing medications. "You need to work with your doctor and pharmacist on this," says James Polli, a pharmacist and researcher at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy. "But if it's a choice between this or going to Canada, or playing russian roulette buying 'discount' pills on the Web, I'd choose tablet splitting."
Slicing safely
These features can make pills dangerous or difficult to split:
Shell: Capsules, extended-release pills, and pills with safety coatings
Size and shape: Spheres, triangles, or other unusual shapes, and thick coatings
Strong dose response: A small dose change--if you don't split evenly--has a big effect.
Patient ability: Hand tremors, poor vision, cognitive problems
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