Keah

Not Keah Kara but wanted to say that the more you get the cheaper they are so 120 may not be but a few dollars more then the 90.

Just wanted to let you know and shop around,check out the drugstores in your area as to prices and brands offered and some wont give you this over the phone but most of them will.

Hi Kara, Actually, I found that Costco is much less expensive for some meds than Walmart and you don't need to have a membership to use the pharmacy. Just tell the person checking ID cards at the door that you're going to the pharm and they'll let you in. Of course you can't purchase anything else besides prescriptions, not even aspirin, but at least you may get a better price on the meds.

It's true that meds get cheaper as the # goes up too. There is a price for the filling of the prescription and then the price per pill. If you get more, that price may get lower, just like the family size packages are cheaper. Another issue for some is that the co-pay is based on the cost that the pharmacy charges your insurance. The drug store might charge $50 and you have a co-pay of $30, but someplace like Walmart or Costco could charge $42 and you co-pay could drop to $25 or whatever the next lower one is. I've actually seen this in action with my Mom's insurance. There was a $15 difference in her co-pay between the local drug store and Costco for the same generic medication and same # of pills.

Do you have a mail in program available to you? I was getting my Oxy every 30 days for which I paid $56 & change. I also had a $25 co-pay for the office visit because you can't have refills on Oxy. This totaled almost $82 per month! My insurer gave told me how to look up the State Laws which designate that for mail in insurance programs, a licensed practitioner can prescribe up to a 90 day supply of Schedule 2 meds. I only have coverage for 60 days, but since I made that switch, I only see the Doc every 2 months and the co-pay for the 60 day supply is $20. I went from paying $82 per month to paying $45 every 2 months! This is something you should definitely look into. I literally saved over $1000 just on the cost of meds since I made the switch last year.

In any case, the bottom line for all of us is finding the most appropriate med to treat our pain. If the MS Contin worked the best for you, then that is the med you should have. I can also see that the cost of meds is something that needs to be considered. Like you, I am counting my pennies and I've had to make choices about meds based on the overall cost.

In any case, I hope that you and your Doc can figure out which med will offer you the most relief and dig into your purse the least. Be well.

Kara, By all means, call the company that handles your mail in program. They will be able to give you info about your State Laws and how to look them up. I actually printed out copies to bring to my Doc to make sure that I would get the script for 60 days. Since I mostly see the PAs for follow ups and refills, they were adamant that they could only write for 30 days until I showed them proof that 90 days was acceptable for a mail in program.

THanks for you're good wishes, but I'm not so sure I'll ever have an lpd. I'll settle for an mpd (moderate) though. ;-) I'm glad that your husband was able to take you and hope that it all went well. Happy Easter to you too.

So Kara, do you not sleep either, or are you an early bird? Just curious.

I think that too many Docs use weight as an excuse for our symptoms. You didn't gain weight as suddenly as you began having leakage! Since she's thinking you've got some arthritis going on, maybe you should follow up on this with a rheumy and perhaps even a Neurologist. I am overweight with all sorts of lumbar problems, but I don't leak. If I did, I'd beat a path to a Doc who could give me a real reason for it.

The $17.36 isn't too bad, but if you could do 90 days through mail in, you might just save the cost of a whole month. The way my plan works, meds that I'd pay $17.36/month for at the local pharmacy might only cost me $5.00/month through mail in for a toal of $10.00 for 2 months. Mos mail in programs cover 90 days and give you one month free. If that were the case for me, I'd only pay $10.00 for 3 months. So, make yourself a list of all your meds and call to see what you might save. I put off doing that for over a year. When I finally looked at the cost savings, I was furious with myself for not having done it sooner.

I hope that the bump up to 10mgs helps you and you have a great weekend!

UUGGHH! Another early bird! Hubby is usually up by 4am too. Actually, I'm shocked that he's still asleep!

I highly recommend finding the info about the state laws and bringing that. I never asked if I could come every 2 months. Instead, I asked for the scripts to be written for 60 days because that's what my mail in program requires. When I was told that it was illegal for them to write more than 30 days, I pulled out the papers and showed them that they were wrong. A 90 day supply is acceptable for mail ins. I left with my scripts.

I'd also make sure that you get a separate script for 10 to 14 days while the mail in program processes your meds, or make your appt early enough that you won't run out while waiting for the shipment. For narcotics, the actual script must be mailed to them. Then they have to fill it and mail the pills back. Luckily, the mailing back part is quick because they all use overnight shipping for narcotics to ensure a signature upon delivery.

I now keep order forms & envelopes in my pocketbook. When I get my narc scripts, I can drop them in the mail on the way home. If I am prescribed something else, like neurontin, I can tape the script to the form and have the secretary run it through the fax.

OK, I'm off to see if I can catch a few winks before we head off to the MILs for the weekend. Sigh. She's not my favorite person, but I am looking forward to seeing my nieces and nephews. Be well!