Prescription Co-Pays
 

Hi Everyone.

Does anyone have a trick for reducing the amount of co-pays? This is what I currently pay.:eek:

Lidocaine patches - $40
Lyrica - $43.82
Norflex - $18

It's really expensive to pay this every month. I have a feeling that I pay alot less than some of you - :p

What kind of insurance do you have?? I have Blue Cross Blue Shield...

currently paying:
Lidocaine patches- $10
Amitriptyline, Neurontin, Celebrex, Methadone- $3 each
Baclofen- $10
Lyrica- $40

Is it that my meds are cheaper or my insurance is better? I know I have good insurance, but wasn't sure on this one.

I think I pay more for all the vitamins/ herbs and supplements than I do on meds!! Though just these meds get expensive enough for my parents~ with 11 children, me/ PDD NOS brother/ severely autistic brother and mom (with hypertension) all on meds...! (you can imagine!)


With medical bills there's a $450 out of pocket deductible, and then $15 co pays for PCP visits, and $25 co pays for specialists.

So, yesterday, with the nail surgery it was $150 (since we still had money left to pay on my deductible) and $25 for the visit.

I know I am blessed with this insurance... I can go to "better" doctors than I could with most insurances.


Interesting thread! I can't think of a trick other than taking as little meds as possible... :confused:

Hi
 

I don't know how your income is but what I found you can call the company that makes the product and if you can't afford it they will give it to you free every 6 months. All you have to do is fill out a half of a page and your Dr. fills out the other half and faxes it to them.

I called a company when I was fighting for some of my meds and even though I had insurance and the company wouldn't pay for it they offered to send it to me. Bill got several of his meds. free for years.

To get the tollfree nos. call your pharmacist and he will give you the number and then you just call them. The program is called the Indogent Care Program.

I hope this helps.

Ada

try Wal-Mart

I have Blue Cross BlueShield also but mine is medicare based, and i only pay 20$ a month for BCBS's coverage and they cover my meds also.. i only pay 5$ for gen's and $10-15$ for brand name. I just got my Prednisone for my hands and it was a total of 90 pills for the month and i had to only pay get this .56 cents!! I go to Eckerds (now RiteAid). and my nurontin is 10 and baclofen is 4.88 and my morphine is 3.88 for a month and my inhalers are 5$ my lidocaine patches i have only pay 7.76 when i need them.. i get the big pack also... ??

What do you have for insurance?? I would ck walmart or sams club or i have found that Walgreens is also cheaper then the normal ones.. i have to get a shot every month that is 700$ and i only have to pay 36$ and it would have been 84$ if i went to eckerds... soo... but you cant really pharmacy hop either soo...??

;)
Amber

Well, I'm not sure if I should say this or not, but I work at BCBS.

So, you would think that the insurance would be better. I also have the best plan possible to buy... Obviously it's not as good.

Thanks Ada, off to Pfizer I go... If getting these for free has anything to do with my income, I'm in trouble.

Amber, no way would I get Medicare - I'm also not on SSI either and don't qualify in my state. I would need to be out of work for 1 year before I would even qualify...

So, in a way, they make more from me so that they can charge others less. I currently do go to Walgreens. So, I think this might be a losing battle. Any other ideas? Ada, I'll check out the program that your husband was on.

InHisHands,

I forgot to comment. My insurance, I pay about $120/mo for family coverage. No deductible, $100 hospital stay per day, $20 office visit - same for specialists...

So, my medical coverage for treatments and such is very good. I pay nothing. They must make up for it in prescriptions...

Thank you everyone for your comments.

Hi,
 

When you get the application faxed to you or mailed to you or your Dr. ask your Drs. office to put a copy of it in their file and then when the 6 months is up all they have to do is sign it and send it back for the next 6 months supply. Some companies send it right to your home but Bill had his sent to our PCP's office and it would have his name on it and they would call him to pick it up.

Ada

There is a prescription card called Sun association. The website esunhealth.net. As far as I understand you can use it no matter the insurance you have and save money on prescriptions.

I have no insurance at all so pay full price for everything I need. It's what is keeping me from going on Lyrica. I can't afford it. I have it and save about $30 on my pain med a month. I go to Walmart for my baclofen and pay $8 a month. It's too bad they don't do what they do for pain meds and the like. It's all antibiotics, baclofen, and other non narcotic meds. I've got the list if anyone needs it.

Hugs,

Karen

Hi Karen,

Yes, I would like to have the list if you have it handy.

Thank you so much!

Lidocaine patches
 

Well, I did just go to the Endo Pharmaceuticals website and asked if they have a program to help with the patches. That, in itself, would be helpful. If I could just get those for less, it would make things easier. I'm purposely not putting them on - when I'm in pain - because I'm trying to use them sparingly...

I'm also going to start Lyrica this weekend for the first time. That's another reason why I'm paying so much. Lyrica is double than Neurontin. So, we'll see how this goes.

Thank you everyone.

Hi,
 

If you don't get an answer through their website DO call them. Most companies have a department that deals with the free meds. You usually get a very nice person that will send you out an application so you can see if you qualify.

Did you by any chance find a tollfree no. for them?

Ada

No, I wasn't able to find an 800 number. Interestingly enough, they didn't have a phone number on their website that I could find, either.

Hi,
 

I PM'd you.

I always was able to get toll free nos. from my Pharmacist. Let me know the name of the company by PMing me and I will call if not today to try and get you one.

Ada

Thanks for the thread
 

Wow !! I need to find out if I can get my Lidocaine patches somewhere else....I pay $100 co pay on them. So I totally understand the using them sparingly thing. Thanks for the info
Jeanne

Hi
 

I called the pharmacy and they came up with two toll free nos. for Endo.
1-800-892-6131 and 1-800-462-3636. Steve said they will most likely have to direct you to the right department.

Ada

http://i.walmart.com/i/if/hmp/fusion...icdruglist.pdf

It's quite an extensive list. One month's prescription is 30 pills for $4. Like with my baclofen, I take it 2 x's a day, 60 pills a month = $8 a month for prescription. I wasn't clear on that when I switched my scrip over so thought I'd put it here so no one else is confused about it. $8 is better than $20! :D

Hugs,

Karen

My insurance doesn't cover any of my meds. I seem to be on expensive ones too. My cymbalta is like 150 a month,the patches is like 160,etc. I could by a small island just kidding. If they worked for pain relief it would be worth it but they don't. I get so excited when I get a cheap med like when I switched from Lyrica to neurontin. I do go to Costco for some of my prescriptions and it is cheaper. I also now when I try a new med I get a week supply to start to see if bad side effects or see if the doc has any samples.

Ada, Do you have MEdicare part D? If so I found a lot of these medication for my daughter paid for with minimal copays and BRAND for $5 with AARD. You do not have to be a senior citizen either.

Di

Hi DiMarie,
 

My copay is only 2.00's for meds or Drs. visits. I'm ok with all of mine. some of my meds are even free. I was just trying to help Dealingwithtos with getting her some meds.

I went 5 years without insurance in the 90's so I did without a lot of my meds. My surgeries were donated by different Drs. I do know what they are going through.

A lot of people donot know that most companies will give you the meds that they make if you fall below a certain income guideline. The Program is called the Indegent Care Program.

Ada

I had 9 months between when I lost my medical coverage from work & when Medicare DX went into effect in Jan 06.

http://www.needymeds.com/

I used this website for all my meds & the only one I couldnt get was one I took due to having Sjogren's Syndrome. I think the only med I paid for was the OxyCodone. The rest were free. I got Neurontin, Baclofen, Kadian SR (morphine sulfate), Oxycodone, Trental, Nexium, & Singular. You do have fill out forms from each Pharmacuetical company & some/most were based on income. But the only income I had was SSD & Long term disability insurance payments.

Anyway this site works.

DebbyV