A pharmacist is trying to stock the pharmacy with cheaper alternatives for customers. She will stop carrying the more expensive items. In doing so, she is trying to determine which of the following forms is the most expensive.

Question

Tablet form comes in 50 mg tablets and cost $75.00 for a bottle of 100 tablets.
Capsule form comes in 75 mg capsules and cost $63.75 for a bottle of 85 capsules
Caplet form comes in 100 mg caplets and cost $70.00 for 40 caplets.
Based on the given information, which form is the most expensive?
a.
Tablet form is the most expensive.
b.
Capsule form is the most expensive.
c.
Caplet form is the most expensive.
d.
The forms all have the same unit price.

Answer 1

To determine which form is the most expensive, we need to calculate the cost per milligram for each form.

1. Tablet Form:

   • Dose: 50 mg
   • Cost: $75.00 for 100 tablets
   • Total mg in the bottle: \( 100 \text{ tablets} \times 50 \text{ mg/tablet} = 5000 \text{ mg} \)
   • Cost per mg: \( \frac{75.00}{5000} = 0.015 \) dollars/mg

2. Capsule Form:

   • Dose: 75 mg
   • Cost: $63.75 for 85 capsules
   • Total mg in the bottle: \( 85 \text{ capsules} \times 75 \text{ mg/capsule} = 6375 \text{ mg} \)
   • Cost per mg: \( \frac{63.75}{6375} = 0.01 \) dollars/mg

3. Caplet Form:

   • Dose: 100 mg
   • Cost: $70.00 for 40 caplets
   • Total mg in the bottle: \( 40 \text{ caplets} \times 100 \text{ mg/caplet} = 4000 \text{ mg} \)
   • Cost per mg: \( \frac{70.00}{4000} = 0.0175 \) dollars/mg

Now we can compare the cost per milligram for each form:

• Tablet Form: 0.015 dollars/mg
• Capsule Form: 0.01 dollars/mg
• Caplet Form: 0.0175 dollars/mg

Among these, the Caplet Form is the most expensive at 0.0175 dollars/mg.

So the answer is: c. Caplet form is the most expensive.