Why are medicine bottles so much larger than their contents?

Question

You might get a 2-inch tall bottle with 1/4-inch layer of pills inside. There might not be anything between the pills and the top of the bottle but air. No cotton, in other words. I've been told that medical companies can't afford bottles of the right size, but that doesn't sound believable to me. There's nothing on these bottles anyway that says to return them.

Answer 1

Well, there may be something in the industry's answer, because each different size of bottle requires changes to the machinery that handles them.

BUT I think it's just fraud.

Getting a teensy, tiny bottle for $80.00 is not as good as getting a larger one.  There are laws, not well enforced, that apply to foods that way, to keep container reasonably close to content volume, but not for drugs or supplements.

OK, maybe it is easier to handle, open, etc. especially for geriatrics.