But It'll Cost Ya

[saavedra77]

On learning of my recent bouts of the twitches, my doctor graciously consented to put me back on brand-name anti-seizure meds. Another several days' worth of miscues followed before I was able to actually get the pills from the pharmacy. But, as of the middle of this past week, I'm finally back on the meds that actually work--or, at least, the ones that have best done so in the past.

The catch? The formulary has changed. So from now on, the drugs that actually work are going to cost me three times as much.

The thing is, I'll happily pay it to avoid having another seizure. Hell, I'd practically do anything to to have that.

Comments

Don't count them out entirely...

[ketina.livejournal.com]

Certainly give up on that generic, but don't give up on the concept of generics yet.
I used to take brand name allergy pills, however my insurance company always insists on only covering generics if there is one available that matches the original drug. Thankfully, if you can prove that the generic does not match the original then they'll still cover the original. They initially put me on a generic allergy medicine, but it made me sleepy and didn't do anything to help with being itchy. After much argument regarding the match, they allowed me to go back on the original. Then, about 2 years later, someone came up with a generic that really does match the allergy medicine, and I've now happily been on that for several years.
So I know it's a huge pain, especially in your case as seizures are definitely a lot worse than just being sleepy and ichy, but eventually they might get a generic right. :)

Re: Don't count them out entirely...

[saavedra77.livejournal.com]

Understood--I've never been one for sweeping judgments. On the other hand, (as you say) an ineffective anti-epileptic can be pretty catastrophic. So I'll always be cautious about changing. What I'll want to hear is not just that the drug's supposedly active molecule is the same, but that it's been clinically demonstrated to be equally efficacious for treating seizures in multiple trials. (This is a theme that seems to be emerging in the literature: the current generic anti-seizure meds are proving less efficacious than the brand-names, and some of the latter's supposedly extraneous chemical components may actually be part of what makes them effective.)