I am not getting a prescription filled unless I have a coupon. Let me repeat: UNLESS I HAVE A COUPON.

Michele Ashamalla: My husband got one filled last month without having a coupon, and I let it slide only because he was bleeding profusely at the time. CVS, Rite-Aid, Meijer, Von's, Kroger/Ralph's, Albertson's, Target, Kmart, and other stores often have coupons on their websites and in their advertising circulars. The coupons are for up to $30, usually in the form of a gift card.

Sometimes they are only for transferred prescriptions, and sometimes for new or transferred. They work even if you only have a small co-pay (or no co-pay at all!). Clip or print them when you see them and save them in a file in your office or an envelope in your car. When you have a prescription to fill, call your pharmacy of choice and ask if they take other store's prescription coupons (usually they will, if the other store is local). If you only have a transferred prescription coupon, which seem to be more available, ask if your pharmacy will take that for a new prescription (my local CVS will). If your prescription is for a medication that has no generic, ask the doctor if the drug company provided them with any coupons -- and don't forget to ask for samples. I just took my daughter to the doctor for an eczema cream. The one that worked had no generic equivalent and was $170. My co-pay is $45 for non-generics. The pediatrician sent me off with a batch of samples and a coupon good for $35 off my co-pay. I'm only paying $10 for the cream now at CVS, and I slip the pharmacy a $25 coupon found on the Rite-Aid website, so now I'm up $15 and a super-expensive eczema cream.

This adds up to hundreds of dollars over the course of a year, even if you don't think you have that many prescriptions. Some pharmacies are starting to limit how often this can be done in a specific time period, so make sure you get in on it!

A former state deputy attorney general and current stay-at-home mom, Recession Mama Michele Ashamalla has three kids and ten years of experience stretching one salary to cover the necessities and more. She's all about saving money whenever you can, so you have it to spend on whatever you want!