Alvogen's Percocet

Hi all,

I just picked up a different generic yesterday and it appears to have 30% efficacy of the Watson version. It also gives me a tummy ache, which Watsom never did.

1. Have you tried this generic? What was your experience?

2. Is there any way to get my PM to rewrite the prescription and have the insurance cover a second script or am I totally screwed this month?

Thank you! :)

I don't know my thinking is insurance would not pay for another script until next month especially with it being the same medication. Of course none of us know your dr but with everything being so rigid these days concerning medication I will not be surprised if he says no. But again, the drug store can say we have already filled one script of this month & they can refuse to fill another.

Take care.......Susie

That's a great idea; I forgot about that. Hmm, I'm going to call the triage nurse and see what happens. Thanks for the advice!

For what it's worth, Watson recently changed their generic Lortab. I have heard that the new 'white' ones makes some people sick to their stomach and that they don't do anywhere near as much for the pain as the others did. Watson has said that the only changes are that the dye was taken out.

It could be that Watson is trying to come closer to the low end of the active ingredients than the high end, for both meds.

Say for example the med is 10 mg. They can have anywhere from 8 mg to 12 mg.

Actually, the variance is in the NON active ingredient. The US has some of the most strict laws on generics.

There can be a 20% difference in the "fillers" with which some people can have issues.

But just like with anything, people react differently to all sorts of meds, even over the counter things like Advil and Tylenol. It may work perfectly for one person but do nothing for another.

Case in point, whenever I use Benadryl, I get completely wired and feel like I've had lots of espresso! For many people, it makes them very drowsy.

I have the link below to the FDA website. I am truly not disputing the fact that people have their opinions and reactions to certain meds, just want people to have the information/facts about the generics. The small variable of 3.5% is the accepted amount whether it's brand compared to brand or generic compared to generic/brand.

**Here are a few points from the site:
<ul type="disc" style="margin-top: 0pt;">
<li class="MsoNormal">Generic drugs are required to have the same active
ingredient, strength, dosage form, and route of administration as the brand name
product. Generic drugs do not need to contain the same inactive ingredients as
the brand name product.<span style="font-size: 11pt;"> <span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </li></ul>
<ul type="disc" style="margin-top: 0pt;">
<li class="MsoNormal">The generic drug manufacturer must prove its drug is the
same as (bioequivalent) the brand name drug. For example, after the patient
takes the generic drug, the amount of drug in the bloodstream is measured. If
the levels of the drug in the bloodstream are the same as the levels found when
the brand name product is used, the generic drug will work the same.<span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </li></ul>



Thankfully I have never had a single problem with generics and have used them for my meds all through the years. I have never noticed a difference in any of the Oxycodone manufacturers and I have used almost all of them! I just ask for what is the cheapest! LOL

Here is the link for people to read:

www.fda.gov/Drugs/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/BuyingUsingMedicineSafely/UnderstandingGenericDrugs/ucm167991.htm

Post Edited By Moderator (Blessedx8) : 12/6/2013 4:32:03 PM (GMT-7)

My Dr scripts Percocet, and my pharmacy switched them to Endocet. I know they are supposed to be the same, but I would like to return to the brand name Percocet to see if there is a difference.

I have had scripts changed to a lower dose of the same med and it was approved with no problem. I believe if the count is increased they will also fill enough to fulfill the increase requirement.

SE

I'm wondering who controls the brand issued!…the insurance company or the pharmacy? I used to receive oxycodone, and since been changed to Endocet. Come to think of it!…I now remember them asking me if Endocet was ok to fill the script with. If the script is written for Percocet, can a patient force them to fill with that brand name?

SE

I agree with Mercy.

I was getting brand named medication, a controlled substance, when I got switched over to a generic.

After just a few days, I was getting sick on the tablets, and even my Husband spoke with my doctor. We agreed it must be a reaction to a binding agent or colour that was added.

There was no hub-bub about it. He just wrote a new Rx and wrote, as Mercy stated, "Brand Name Medically Necessary," and the pharmacy and insurance and doctor were all fine. And I didn't get sick.

I'm not on that medication anymore but it taught me a valuable lesson. I never did believe that all generics are created equal. In fact, generic medications are held to a different standard. They only have to contain a particular percentage of bioavailable active ingredient in their tablets, unlike brand names.

Bunch of hoopla.



M.

Thanks folks,

I went to see my pain doc and she was more than happy to write a new replacement script but since it was after hours (5:30 on the west coast) she said to call today and find out if insurance will PAY for a replacement. I just called and they said no, because it goes against policy for them to pay for the exact same script in the same month. (actually, the person that I talked to was a bit of an idiot. This is what I have figured out through re-reading the fine print of all the pharmacy policies.) So NOW, I have all of the different meds that they normally cover to find something that will be approved and be the same strength in pain fighting. And frankly, I don't know if X is stronger than Y, all I know is that my doc has me on a lower dose of the OTC formula so I don't ruin my kidneys.

Can I get your opinions? I know it's not medical advice, disclaimer, blah blah blah.

I am currently on Alvogen's 10/325 oxycodone/acetaminophen, and previously was on Mallingkroft, though I said Watson previously. I didn't have the bottle in front of me, so apologies for my typo. :)

Here are the other oxycodone options:

oxy/ibprof 5/400
oxy/apap 10/650
oxy/apap 2.5/325
oxy/acetaminophen 5/325
oxy/acetaminophen 7.5/325
oxy/acetaminophen 7.5/500
oxy/aspirin 4.83/3.25
oxy/apap 5/500 (cap)

They do have name brand as well, but I don't know how I will react to those either. All I know is that the on the Mallingkroft version, I was fine. On Alvogen, they don't work and they make me sick.

Or is there another opiod (not morphine, I can't breathe on it) I should look into?

Thank you so much for taking the time to read all this stuff!! (and I hope listing out all of that doesn't go against the TOS. If it does, I am truly sorry!)
What can I take as an alternative?

Thanks for the feedback. :) I'll check with insurance and then see what my doc says.

I would ask for the plain Oxycodone then...and just take an OTC acetaminophen with it...if you even need to. I've found that I don't always need the acetaminophen.

I have a script of 5/325 Percs...and then another script of 10mg Oxycodone (without any additives) and I just go back and forth depending on my pain levels.

Thanks LexiRae and Snowbunny!

Lexi - and that is exactly what she prescribed. I feel really bad though. By the time I got to talk to her I was a bit emotional (didn't help that I slept like crud the night before). So she upped the strength (which I didn't know) but replaced the exact number of pills I had. I argued that I had to take more than my daily limit because of the efficacy of the Alvogen pills and I could tell she was like 'ugh'. So I got a small lecture on not to do that (totally warranted; I thought she understood that I had when we had talked the day before), and then calculated what exactly I would need for the rest of the month. When I later picked up the prescription (that was a whole different thread topic in itself), I realized that I had almost double the amount of mgs of active ingrediant than I normally have. I feel like sending her a happy holiday card with a 'sorry and thank you' message in it.

Snowbunny - you know, it was really difficult actually. My Dr had written out the particular brand, trying to help me out and when I left her office I couldn't find it ANYWHERE. I spoke with a pharmacist who said that they usually don't have control over which brand, that when they order it is whatever it is. So I then drove back to the Drs office and explained this with the medical assistant and she said that when I got to a pharmacist, I would just ask for any generic as long as it wasn't Alvogen and that they would speak to the pharmacist on my behalf to clear up the language confusion.

Man...the things that my Drs office did for me in the last week - all because of this stupid brand. Did I mention that I am TOTALLY broken out? It's either the fillers or the stress of it not working but my face is a mess.

Would it be weird if I sent cookies and a thank you card to the Drs office? Maybe I am just suffering from Stockholm Syndrome but they went far above and beyond what a normal pain clinic would do. And I really don't want to harm my relationship with them; I want to nurture it. (I will be saving a lot of those pills and as a confidence thing will give her the rest at my next appt so she knows I don't take advantage of her on purpose. She was pretty amazing!)