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After ten years, pharmacy issues getting methadone

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Chronic Pain
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Posted 12/17/2013 4:27 PM (GMT 0)
I have had chronic pain everywhere for at least 16 years (and I'm not that old so I've been in pain half my life) and have been prescribed methadone for about 10 of those years. Last month I went to my regular pharmacy and the pharmacist told me that the DEA came in and said that from now on only 20% of a pharmacy's sales can be controlled substances and that the ultimate plan is to make methadone only available at clinics (where I'm told I would have to visit and pay daily what I now pay a month!). I was forced to go to Wal-Mart, who only has a different formulation of methadone which has had me bedridden with nausea all month plus their methadone costs twice as much! Anyone else having this problem? I was told by the pharmacist this time to call my Senators and Representative and tell them to support the Drug Quality and Security Act, so if you also have this problem I say do the same cause I'm certainly giving these guys a piece of my mind!

Also I was told that several methadone patients are being switched to Opana (some by choice, some had it forced upon them). Has anyone switched from methadone (I currently take 6 10mg pills daily) to whatever this Opana is? If so did you go through every hell dimension currently in existence? By that I mean withdrawal...and how do the two medications compare as far as side effects and pain relief go?

My doctor will likely not force me to switch but I hate the drama involved with getting the methadone I have been taking properly for a decade. I feel like I am being punished, and I panic every time I have to get a rx because if I can't get it I will get very very ill. If it becomes too much of a problem to get methadone (which works VERY well for me) I will probably have to switch, however.

It seems like the DEA is trying to either kill the legal use of methadone or kill small pharmacies because at Wal-Mart they hadn't even heard of any restriction on the distribution of methadone!

Opinions, advice, wisdom, whatever you can offer...I want it. Thanks in advance.
Posted 12/17/2013 4:56 PM (GMT 0)
I dont have any advice or anything , but just wanted to say that sounds so cruel! Im so sorry that you are faced with this and in so much pain and sick!! Im sure someone here will have some advice soon

Hang in there!
Posted 12/17/2013 6:04 PM (GMT 0)
I am so sorry you are going through this. Eventually, I feel I will have to deal with this with my suboxone (it's similiar to methadone). I have to go to a special clinic but it can be refilled in a regular pharmacy of my choice. Good luck to you and I hope you can continue your meds.
Posted 12/18/2013 4:36 AM (GMT 0)
H.R. 3204: Drug Quality and Security Act-

/www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/113/hr3204/text

Post Edited By Moderator (nvrthesame98) : 12/17/2013 11:34:07 PM (GMT-7)

Posted 12/18/2013 6:35 AM (GMT 0)
M&G I made it a hot link.
Posted 12/18/2013 8:35 PM (GMT 0)
I don't see any new Federal law that mandates this new 20% of Pharmacy sales??? If the original poster can ask their pharmacy what law this is, that would be great.

The law that Mercy&Grace posted is about having the FDA have more control and oversight over compounding Pharmacies because of that horrible meningitis outbreak in 2012.

It also develops a new uniform system for tracking and tracing meds to prevent counterfeits from entering the pharmaceutical supply chain.

So that new law doesn't have anything to do with you getting Methadone or your Dr. or any Dr. switching you to another med.

And just fyi but "controlled substances" are not just opiates...They are everything from sleep meds, anti-anxiety meds, ADD meds, benzos, etc.

I'm sorry that you are having trouble finding the medication that you need, but I would contact your Dr. asap and ask for help. I would also DRIVE and walk in and speak to head Pharmacists about finding your Methadone prescription. Most will not give out a lot of info over the phone.

Go in and speak to them. Try the big box stores like Sams or Costco as you do NOT have to be a member to use the Pharmacy. I happen to use Sams and pay for the yearly membership because it gives me even deeper discounts for my meds. In between that and the gas I buy there, it pays for itself within two months!

Many Pharmacies will also "match" another Pharmacies price if you find it lower someplace else.

Obviously the worst case scenario is having to switch meds based on not being able to find Methadone in your area (again, not because of any law, just because of choosing to stock it), but switching meds is doable.

We have quite a few people here who have done it with Methadone as well as many with other meds. I had to change based on loss of insurance!

I wish you luck, keep us posted.
Posted 12/18/2013 9:55 PM (GMT 0)
I wasn't sure if that was what Saffron Nightshade was referring to. But that's what they said they were told, so I shared what I found. As most of us know, we can't always depend on what the pharmacists tells us.
Posted 12/19/2013 1:59 AM (GMT 0)
this might help:

http://www.pharmaciststeve.com/?p=4687

distributors are getting heat from the DEA, no doubt due to past issues in florida some time ago. there is no new law.

also remember, there is a yearly allowance regarding what mfg. can make, we are nearing the end of the year and therefore the end of the yearly allotted mfg. allowances.
Posted 12/19/2013 2:15 AM (GMT 0)
This time of year it is often very difficult, if not impossible to get some Schedule II meds, especially. I remember when the kids were growing up, we would have a hard time finding the ADD meds that 3 of them took. As has been stated, manufactures are given a certain amount of active ingredients and that's it for the entire year. So when it gets to the ends of the year, obtaining certain meds can usually be very difficult, if not impossible. This seems to happen every year in varying degrees.

Several yrs ago, CHADD, a ADHD Organization got together and really pushed for there to be a increase in the amount of active ingredients for ADD meds to me increased. The past yr or two, the shortage of ADD meds hasn't been as great as it use to be. It still exists, it's just not as widespread or as severe. Maybe one of the organizations that are suppose to fight for chronic pain patients could do something along the same lines.
Posted 12/19/2013 2:26 AM (GMT 0)
Sorry, but I don't click on links that don't come from a reputable source...I don't know what "Pharmacist Steve" is?? There are many "blog" type websites which sounds like what that is....

I have a website that is the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy as well as the Controlled Substances Act .gov website and can't find anything that says the DEA is limiting controlled substances to 20% of all sales..

It is fairly rare that the CSA gets updated with an actual new law so if you or someone can find a link showing this was passed into law that amended the CSA then please show us.

The only thing I have found with a percentage is about what a Pharmacy can transfer before they become a "distributer"....it's the 5% rule.

Mike, can you please show me where it states the FDA or DEA says how much of a medication a manufacturer can make? I would like to see the numbers for each type of medication. I can't imagine it would be an "across the board" number for every possible med.

Keep in mind that there are stocks of medication out there of certain meds. Like when the patent ran out on the generic Oxycontin medication and it wasn't made anymore, you could still get it at certain Pharmacies almost two years afterwards. It all depends on what distributer someone uses and where they get their meds. Larger chains can get meds from all over if they are "short" on something.

Now, I do know that for safety purposes, many Pharmacies will keep on hand only a certain amount of medications but usually make sure their long time customers are taken care of. My Sams club gets weekly allotments of their controlled substances but they base it on past and projected sales.

Unfortunately we get quite a few threads/posts where people are "hearing" things from their Pharmacist that just aren't factual and it's based on a personal decision by the Pharmacy or even the company that owns them. Unless there was a "raid" or some real trouble with this Pharmacy of the OP, the DEA does not just walk in going door to door of Pharmacies updating them on new regulations. That is all done by company memos and/or the Board of Pharmacies website.

Post Edited (Snowbunny21) : 12/18/2013 7:32:25 PM (GMT-7)

Posted 1/5/2014 8:30 PM (GMT 0)
I was on Methadone for over 10 yrs. myself... July of 2012 I had to change PM Dr.'s and went without for 3 weeks... Then the new Dr. only gave me Perc. 10's... it wasn't a fun few months... then after almost 8 months they finally gave me Opana ER... along with Oxycodone 15 mg. 3 times a day... I only take 20 mg. Opana ER but it took a few weeks and I am so thankful... Methadone was a miracle to me ..... until I stopped taking it. Then I saw just what it was doing to me and my health... I was on a much higher dose... 120 mg. daily along with 30 mg. Oxycodone 4 times a day... way over medicated... Now I wouldn't take Methadone for any amount of money... Maybe switching is a good thing... I feel much better without it... Just saying.....
Posted 1/5/2014 8:47 PM (GMT 0)
I often wonder if some patients aren't too afraid to tell a dr they don't want to take Methadone. In 2004, my dr recommended methadone and I told him I wouldn't take it because I was afraid of it. We decided on Demerol 100 mg QID of the brand and it usually lasted me 5-6 hrs. I know that Demerol isn't usually used for chronic pain, but I suggested it based on my past experiences with pain meds. I had also taken it for chronic pain for a yr in the late 1990's. In 2006, my dr wanted to put me on fentanyl and I said no, then he wanted to put me on 30 mg MS Contin. I took the MS Contin but I asked him to reduce it to 15 mgs to begin with. The 15 mgs worked fine. We know our situations better than our drs do. For example, I live alone and the thought of anything making me high or dizzy or knocking me out scares me beyond words.
Posted 1/6/2014 2:02 AM (GMT 0)
pharmaciststeve has a short discussion about the difficulties pharmacists are dealing with in obtaining controlled substances due to DEA pressures. you can google him

mfg. quotas http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/fed_regs/quotas/2011/fr1215.htm

if you don't want to click it google established aggregate production quotas controlled substances.

quotas for are schedule I and II
Posted 1/6/2014 3:25 AM (GMT 0)
Schedule I aren't meds you can get at the drug store. Things like Marijuana and Cocaine are Schedule i. They are used but only in hospitals and very restricted. For example, Cocaine is used as a local anesthesia for some surgeries.
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