I am seeing the outrageous premiums in Midwest USA too. Here, they are at $8 over for generic and ASE's are $20 over spot, wanting about $45 US for an ASE - get outta here.

At these time, I find there are two alternatives, at least with my local coin shop.

First, the premiums for foreign coins, like Britannia or Pandas, are already high. However, they don't adjust them upward. So, it's only a couple of bucks over the generic prices. So, I get a better coin, for a higher price, but the premium is not adjusted higher. Overall, it's a deal, compared to alternatives.

Second, never forget about constitutional silver. The 90% silver is usually just a math formula compared to spot price. So, they usually don't adjust the price upward. When premiums are high, I buy 90% silver at the regular price.

Each dealer is different, so find where they are not adjusting. It is usually inside the case, where they already priced it high, but not with the outrageous premiums.

Cheers.