Pricey meds
I just opened the bill for a simple surgery and was shocked to see that it was almost $6,000! Woah!
Luckily, it was the end of my insurance year, so I had already met my deductible and out of pocket limit. So I won't have to pay a copay on that bill.
That also tells me that I have spent a LOT of money on medical care over the last year.
If you are in the same boat, what can you do?
We use manufacturer's coupons for our inhalers. Son #2 and daughter Kitty and I are all on long term controller (maintenance) inhalers. Even thought insurance pays for most, we still have a $75 copay each month (for each of us.)
Luckily, I have a really good pharmacy that knows us well (since we visit them so often.....) and they will search for manufacturer's coupons for us. So, instead of paying a $75 copay for my inhaler each month, I pay $25. In fact, when I renew my prescription each year, they search for a new coupon to apply to my copay. And they do that for my son and daughter's inhalers too.
Years ago (in 2007), Son #2 was on a biologic injection to control his severe asthma. The medicine was given as a shot once a month, and his tiny vial of medicine was $1,000 per month. And he had monthly injections for 7 years. Insurance covered most of it, but we had a $125 copay each month.
Which doesn't sound like much - but there are 4 of us with allergies and asthma, so monthly meds really add up. We found help on a website called Needymeds. They are a sort of website where you can go to find help with co-pays, find a low income/free clinic near you, etc,
Want to see if your drug has a copay help or coupon? Click here and select from the alphabet list of medicines.
Want to find a clinic that is free/low incomes/or pay what you can afford? Click here.
They also have a list of mental health clinics, and even substance addiction clinics.
Want to attend a camp about asthma? You can find some listed here.
Or you can search for camps or retreats for any other medical condition too.
So, you may have to do a little digging, but there are a lot of programs out there that can help.
Good luck!
We get inhalers when we go on trips abroad to visit family and stock up! It's obviously out of reach for most people but if you're going anyways, might as well save some money on the medication. Of course, you normally have to hit up multiple pharmacies to get the stock you want, but when it works, it works!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you found something that works for you!
DeleteI’ve been wiped out being a new mom and haven’t been a regular commentor in awhile but a couple of days ago we were on our first family outing and stopped by chipotle. I like that restaurant and was used to the ingredients. As they were making my bowl they had meat that looked like chorizo I asked what it was and the employee said it was a vegetarian meat substitute. Being chronically sleep deprived it didn’t register that most meat substitutes are soy based (I’m allergic to soy and have had anaphylaxis before). Hubby who was slightly distracted carrying our daughter overheard and stopped me just in time. I was about to pay and had gotten a bowl with the meat substitute. The manager was nice and let me have another no charge. Whew that was close!
ReplyDeleteOh wow! That is so scary! I'm so glad your Hubby was paying attention!
DeleteStay safe!
Also if you haven’t heard of it check out the app “propeller health.” It is amazing and you have sensors on your inhaler to track usage and it shows air quality and what is happening during triggers
ReplyDeleteGood to know, I have a friend that uses one and loves it.
DeleteI'm not a big technology fan....I'm too old! Haha!
Did you miss my comment?
ReplyDeleteYes! Not sure what it going on with the comments?!
Delete