Reference · Glossary
The words this publication uses, defined plainly
Billing terms are where most price comparisons go wrong. These definitions are the ones the record sheet actually uses.
14 termsChecked Oct 23, 2026
Billing cadenceThe rhythm a charge recurs on, recorded separately from the supply period. Allowed values are fixed days, calendar month, quarterly, annual, or not established.Monthly equivalentA derived figure: the charge as billed, multiplied by 365.25, divided by 12, divided by the interval in days. It is not a price the provider offers.All-in monthlyThe monthly equivalent with every required fee added. It is withheld entirely when a required fee carries no published price.Monthly equivalent, known chargesThe monthly equivalent counting only charges with a published amount: the recurring charge, a separate membership, and priced required fees.Required feeA charge the buyer must pay to receive the program, outside the recurring medication charge. Recorded in one of three buckets: confirmed mandatory, unresolved required, optional.Unresolved required feeA fee that is required but carries no published price. It withholds the all-in figure and is published as not established rather than estimated.Supply periodHow long the dispensed medication is expected to last. It is never read as a billing period, and it never determines the monthly equivalent.Compounded preparationA preparation made by a compounding pharmacy. It is not an FDA-approved finished product and is not interchangeable with a branded one.FDA-approved finished productA branded product with an approved application. Recorded as a distinct approval status, because the distinction changes both the price and what is being sold.Check dateThe date a provider page was last read for a given field. A figure without a check date is not published here as verified.Not establishedThe state of a field we could not source. It is not zero, not free, and not absent: it is unknown, and it is published as unknown.Evidence statusOne of four values attached to every field: source checked, owner confirmed, conflicting sources, or not established. Owner confirmed means the program’s own operator stated a non-price fact directly; it never sets a price, and it is not a review or approval of a record.First paymentThe amount taken before or at the first dispensing. It is recorded separately because it is often not the recurring charge.Dose-tiered pricingA pricing structure where the charge changes with the dose. Recorded as varies by dose, with the entry price marked as an entry price.