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duragesic question on early refill

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Posted 10/26/2007 4:45 PM (GMT 0)
Im supposed to go to cancun, mexico this monday but my duragesic isnt due till wednesday, so i contacted the pharmacy and they said they would fill it if it would go thru with my prescription assistance program card. Does anyone use this program or know if it will go thru 2 days early, ive been planning this trip for weeks.
Posted 10/26/2007 5:11 PM (GMT 0)
A refill that is 2 days early shouldn't be a problem. But then, some insurance companies and pharmacies get weird when it comes to triplicate scrips. Call your insurance company and ask them about a Vacation Release. Most policies will cover early refills due to travel plans once or twice a year.
Posted 10/26/2007 5:29 PM (GMT 0)
I just called the prescription assistance program and they said to get an early refill my doctor would have to call them. So i called my doctors office and talk with a nurse, she said they will write the script early but they dont call insurance companys, so now i dont know what to do ive been planning this trip for weeks.

Posted 10/27/2007 1:14 AM (GMT 0)
Sorry you are having this problem.  Apparantly the insurance companies have changed their policies as far as vacations go.  Because of my illness, we can't take vacations every year.  Until this one our last one was 3 years ago.  I went in to fill my meds early and there was no problem I was allowed 2 early refills a year.  This year I went in and it was declined.  My pharmacist called the insurance and they told her she could only give me so much extra even though I had the script from my doc.  I said forget it and since we were going to another state in the US, I just found a pharmacy and showed them my script and had them check it out and order my meds there.  It has gotten riduculous.  I understand they have to be careful, but they are making pain patients lives extremely difficult in order to curtail addicts, which isn't going to happen anyway.  An addict will find some way to get drugs. 

Melissa

Posted 10/27/2007 3:30 PM (GMT 0)
I just talked with the pharmasit and said they would fill it two days early but they only have 10 duragesic patches i use 20 patches per month, i know with insurance you can get 10 filled and get another prescription for 10 later that month. But i dont know if you can with the johnson and johnson prescripton assistance program. Does anyone know if that is ok with them? I would call them but there closed on weekends. thanks  matt

Posted 10/28/2007 11:44 PM (GMT 0)
You can't split up a triplicate prescription. Same thing happened to me once when the pharmacy didn't have the entire amount I needed. I'm not familiar with the program you're in, so will they allow you to use a different pharmacy that has enough in stock? Or can the pharmacy get more in for you in time?
Posted 10/31/2007 6:15 PM (GMT 0)

So sorry to hear about your refill problems.  I have been on duragesic patch for 3+ years and never had a problem until I moved across the country.  Sometimes I go right to the wire with only the patch I'm wearing before the pharmacy can release the RX.  I start 2 weeks in advance with my doctor which takes a full week to get the script.  The pharmacy processes it immediately, but the insurance company battles with me every month - wanting me to go back to a 3-day replacement from 2 days.  And we haven't even talked about the pharmacy stock.  The pharmacies cannot "hold" controlled drugs for you.  The common response I get from the pharmacy is "...just go the emergency room if you start going into withdrawl".  My doctor is fabuluous in helping me get what I need...but the insurance company & pharmacy techs make me feel like something is wrong with me to keep bothering them until I have the patches in my hand.  My scipt is always written for one month....if the pharmcy doesn't have the exact amount on hand, then they cannot dispense a different amount...even if you offered to pay for only one patch!  I get nervous and edgy every month when I start to think about refill time...I've tried 12 pharmacies in the area and they are all the same. 

Be strong - plan well - and be insistent on getting what you need for your pain.  Make sure that when you travel, you take your patches in their original packaging with the RX label. 

Have any other duragesic patch users experienced the same treatment - or do you have solutions for refills?

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