Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Representative Elijah Cummings (D-MD) are leading a bicameral investigation into price spikes for generic medications to determine the cause of these dramatic price increases and the effect they have on patients. They have requested NCPA assistance in gathering examples from patients and pharmacists in how these price increases have impacted patient care, such as are these price increases forcing patients into the Medicare donut hole sooner or are they forcing patients to forgo their medication altogether.
Please call or email Michael Tomberlin at (571) 882-3308 and Michael.Tomberlin@ncpanet.org if you have examples you would like to share. Thank you.
Filed under: General Problems
I received an email about the pricing of hydrocodone products and most of them are tripling in price. Remember Tetracycline and how cheap it was. Had rx a few days ago for #42 and its $192. Had a rx for Econozole cream and it was over $500. Drug prices are going up dramatically and there is no logical reason why.
The scenario is always the same, and I witnessed it many times over the past year. The medication goes on backorder for a month or two, and then, once it’s back in stock, it is gone up in price 300-400%(for the pharmacy to buy it). It happened to dozens of generics over the past 1-2 years.
So true Steve! I couldn’t believe how much a patients generic Methadone script was. My lord.. That is cheapest pain medicine anywhere and it has doubled. $68.00 for 90 pills? Not that it is not really expensive. But.. These actually cost pennies on the dollar. Least they used too.
Now the FDA and Congress wants to make all pain medications abuse deterrent. Chronic pain patients are already financially strapped. How in the hell are they going to be able to afford all name brand medicine? The generics will be gone??
It seems to me.. that all they really care about is the addicts. Besides.. addicts have moved on to heroin or they would just take more pills. So this isn’t the real reason for making them all this way. It’s the money! I’m sure Obamacare is going to be willing to cover these meds?
With the new changes it will be interesting to see where this goes. Personally I dont think much of Cummings, hesn usually all talk no walk..Daniel Issa is the real pit bull. imho