Medical and healthcare expenses are some of the biggest expenditure items in a US household. As per an estimate from “The National Health Expenditure Account (NHEA)”, healthcare spending in the USA has grown to 2.7% in 2021 to $12, 914 per person. The total healthcare spending in the USA has grown to $4.3 trillion in 2021. As a share of the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP), health spending accounts for 18.3%.
Credit cards offer good rewards on purchases made on grocery stores or drugstores. Major retailers like Costco, Walmart, Whole Foods, or Target also have drugstores or pharmacies in their stores. Customers can fill their prescritons or they can buy over the counter medicines, nutraceuticals, or other healthcare related purchases from these stores as well. Do read fine print of your credit card for the applicable terms on your card. The merchant need to post the correct Merchant Code for the applicable cash rewards.
Apart from these credit cards, customer can look for best rewards cards or best retailer cards for their shopping needs.
Best credit cards for healthcare expenses from drugstores
If you are someone, who get their prescriptions filled from traditional drugstores like Walgreens,Rite-aid, or CVS. These below credit cards can help you provide best value for your money. Though they do not provide a considerable cash back. But every buck counts.
#1 Card Name: CITI Custom Cash Card
Fees: This card has no annual fee. But, there is a 3% balance transfer fee is applicable.
APR: This credit card offers 0% Intro APR on purchases and balance transfers. All the purchases and balance transfers should be made within 15 months. After that, the variable APR applicable will be 18.24% – 28.24%,
Rewards: Card members can earn $200 in cashback rewards. In order to, qualify for the card members to have to spend $1,500 in eligible purchases in the first 6 months of card opening. The cash back rewards are in form of Thank You points. This credit card also offers 5% rewards on their selected eligible category of choice for each billing cycle up to a spend of $500. Drugstores or Pharmacy is an eligible categories for this credit card.
Our Rating: 5 / 5
Pros and Cons of this Card: This credit card offers a maximum reward of $25 on pharmacy purchases every month if a user reaches the limit of $500. Once the maximum limit is hit, the rewards will reduce to 1% of the purchases. Card members also earn unlimited 1% rewards for all other purchases. The points are awarded in form of Thank you points. Each $1 spent earns 1 Thank You Point.
Citi Bank defines the drugstore as a broad category. They include purchases made at pharmacies in grocery stores, general merchandise/discount superstores, and wholesale/warehouse clubs. The merchants should submit purchases made in their pharmacy with the drug store and pharmacy merchant category code. So, if a user fills their prescription in a pharmacy or even in grocery stores, for instance, Costco, Walmart, or Whole Foods. The same will be applicable to get rewards.
#2 Card Name: Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card
Fees: This card has no annual fee. But, there is a 3% balance transfer fee is applicable.
APR: This credit card has an introductory offer of 0% APR. The introductory APR is applicable for the first 18 months of the new card opening. Further, all the balance transfers should be in 60 days. Post the introductory offer applicable variable APR is 18.24% – 28.24%.
Rewards: Card members can earn an online $200 cash rewards bonus. To qualify, they must make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of the account opening.
Our Rating: 4 / 5
Pros and Cons of this Card: Bank of America Cash rewards card offers 3% cash back on the category of choice. The available categories are gas, online shopping, dining, travel, drug stores, or home improvement/furnishing. Further, this card offers 2% cash back on groceries and at wholesale clubs. Furthermore, card members earn 1% cash back on the rest of the purchases. Card members can change the category of choice once every month.
This cashback is for a total spend of $2,500 in a quarter. A card member spending $2,500 in a quarter on medicines can get a total cash back of $75. This translates to $25 in cash back every month on a spend of $833.33 every month.
Preferred Rewards members of Bank of America earn 25-75% of bonus rewards every month. Effective rewards for the Preferred Rewards member can be effectively 5.25%.
#3 Card Name: Chase Freedom Flex Credit Card
Fees: $0 in joining and annual fees
Rewards: Card members can earn a $200 bonus after they spend $500 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. They can also earn 5% cash back rewards on grocery purchases (excluding Target and Walmart) on a $12,000 first year spend.
APR: 0% introductory APR for 15 months on balance transfer and purchases, 18.74% – 27.49% variable APR is applicable after that
Our Rating: 4 / 5
Pros and Cons of this Card: Chase Freedom Flex Card offers great rewards on everyday purchases like groceries, gas, and online merchants. This card offers 5% in cash back on the bonus category for each quarter. The bonus category changes every quarter and can include grocery stores, drugstores, online subscriptions, travel, dining out, or retailers. It also offers 5% cash back on travel booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards. This card also offers a 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and also on dining out. For the other purchases, there is a cash back of 1%. Cash back never expires on this card.
So this card offers 3% cashback. If the bonus category in a particular quarter includes drugstore, the total cash back will increase to 8%. The best part about the Chase Freedom Flex card, is no upper limit on the 3% cashback. So effectively you can earn unlimited cashback.
This card also offers Zero Liability protection and purchase protection. Other additional offers and benefits are available from Mastercard.
#5 Card Name: Chase Freedom Unlimited Credit Card
Fees: $0 in joining and annual fees
Rewards: Chase Freedom Unlimited card offers a $200 bonus. In order to qualify for this offer the card members need to spend $500 in the first 3 months of new account opening.
APR: 0% introductory APR for 15 months on balance transfer and purchases, 19.24% – 27.99% variable APR is applicable after that
Our Rating: 4 / 5
Pros and Cons of this Card: Card members earn 5% cash back on grocery store purchases (excluding Target and Walmart). This offer is applicable for spends up to $12,000 spent in the first year. This amounts to $600 of cash back for the first year.
This card offers 3% in cash back rewards for purchases make at select categories. For example, drugstore purchases, dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery services. They also 5% in cash back rewards on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards. Further, the card members can earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on rest of the purchases.
Card members can redeem their cash back for a statement credit or direct deposit to a bank account. They can also link their Amazon.com to the Chase Rewards and can redeem the cash back for purchases on Amazon.
Best credit cards for healthcare expenses made online
If you are someone who prefer to order your medicines online, do look for offers applicable from the credit cards below:
#1 Card Name: America Express Blue Cash Everyday Card
Fees: This card has $0 in annual charges.
APR: American Express Blue Cash card offers a 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers. This offer is applicable for the first 15 months from the date of account opening. After that, a variable APR, 18.24% to 29.24%.
Rewards: Card members earn 3% cash back on U.S. online retail purchases, up to $6,000 per year on eligible purchases. They also earn $250 back as a statement credit. In order to qualify for this offer, they have to spend $2,000 in purchases on the new Card in the first 6 months.
Our Ratings: 4 / 5
Pros and Cons of this card: Card members earn 3% cash back on everyday categories like U.S. Supermarkets and Gas Stations. Once the limit of $6,000 per year is hit, the cashback reduces to 1%. Card members can redeem the cashback anytime they want with no minimum limit.
Card members can also 3% cash back in form of rewards points on online purchases. They can redeem the rewards points for the statement credit. The limit for this offer is $6,000 in purchases. So this translates to $15 in cash back rewards per month. They also receive 1% in cash back on the rest of the purchases.
Credit card members can use the online purchase to make purchases for prescription or non-prescription medicines.
#2 Card Name: Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Card
Fees: This card has a $0 in annual charges
APR: 18.49 – 26.49% in variable APR.
Rewards: Card members receive a $100 deposit directly to their Amazon.com account on opening a new card account.
Our Ratings: 3 / 5
Pros and Cons of this card: The major prerequisite for this credit card is to have an active Amazon Prime membership. Card members earn 5% of purchases as rewards for shopping on Amazon.com or Whole Foods. They also earn 2% in cashback shopping at gas stations and restaurants. Finally, they receive 1% cashback for all other spendings.
Chase and Amazon also offer another credit card Amazon Rewards Visa Card. The card doesn’t require a Prime membership but it also offers lower rewards.
Card members can redeem the cashback on Amazon.com or they can select to redeem it for gift cards, travel, or dining deals on Chase Rewards.
This card also offers extended warranty protection in the US on the manufacturer’s warranty by an additional year, on eligible warranties of three years or less. They also offer theft protection of up to $500 per claim for 120 days of any eligible item bought using this credit card. This card further, offer baggage delay insurance, zero liability protection, travel accident insurance, and lost luggage reimbursement. The above offers are only available in case the purchase is on this credit card.
Finally, this card offers the card members complimentary Visa Signature Concierge Service 24 hours a day