Sadly, even the mega-dealers in the US like Apmex do it, too. Anyway, sometimes it might make sense for the retail customer -- and sometimes not. I've been choosing my battles. Thanks for the reminder & the wise words..
There never was a silver shortage, just a temporary shortage of blanks for coins. It is amazing to me that people have been claiming a shortage in silver when you can buy all the 1000oz bars you want.