It’s 3:00 AM and you’re waiting in line at the 24-hour pharmacy while your child is sick with a fever. The pharmacist rings you up and the total comes to $160 and your health insurance isn’t covering any of it. She says that she’s still waiting on something called “prior authorization” from the insurer. What happened? Prescription prior authorization is a process in which your doctor, your pharmacist, and your health insurance company all coordinate to get you the medicine you need. Doctors and pharmacists must work with the insurer to calculate the coverage for the necessary medicine and apply it at the point of sale. These groups will also scan for any potential adverse events to prevent medicinal complications from arising. If any part of this process breaks down, patient

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