Ugh...the price of Epi pens! WWYD

[CoffeeRTC]

Turns out my teenager has an allergy to tree nuts and now will need to carry the epi pens.

Of course we've all been watching the news stories and reading the stories on line but I never thought it would happen to me!

So, call the script in to the pharmacy. We will need 4 I think. Get a call from the pharmacy and they tell me to sit down...with my copay it will come to $1,200 or so.

Yikes!!!

Here it is....a friend mentioned she has 4 non expired epi pens that her child doesn't need/ never used. Still capped, in the package 100% untouched. She was looking for a way to get rid of them.

So...WWYD???

I've never "shared or borrowed" meds before nor would I in my nursing practice but..???

Lots of scenarios come to mind. I'm assuming if i go with these meds for home use, i will still need to get a script filled for school..so that would only be $600. I will be looking at the coupons out there, but I have a high deductable plan.

[NutmeggeRN, BSN]

Why do you need 4? Two should suffice in most cases- which is one pack. The child should be carrying them. The Adrenaclick is much cheaper, but in most cases the script will need to be written for a generic epinephrine autoinjector.

Two for home and two for school, would be the ideal, because there is never any guarantee that the 1st injection will completely take care of the situation. Either way EMS should be called and (hopefully) arriving prior to the need to administer the second injection.

[KatieMI, BSN, MSN, RN]

If you can wrap your head around this, my insurance doesn't cover the Adrenalclick!

It does cover the auto inject Pen and the price is only $386 for two pens. Epi Pen brand was $590

The only reason I was thinking 4 pens is because they come in two packs. One is kept at school, one with him in his back pack and I was thinking one with me in my purse? I might just be over thinking things.

I'm not carrying ampules and needles with me.

AFAIK, $100, even multiplied by 2 without coverage, is still less than $386 for one generic Epipen pack.

And carrying amps and needles is sure less convinient but it is WAY cheaper, and, as you are an RN, quite safe. Plus, standard needles are felt WAY less painful than autoinjectors. I moved recently to AdrenalClick plus 0.1 ml doses drawn at place because there is no Junior option for AdrenalClick and I had tachyarrythmia problems a few times. Took a day or so for my absolutely non-medical family to learn it.

You need to ask school if they have supply; Mylan Pharma gives a whole lot of samples to schools, and if yours have them, you may not need one for school. If not, you probably will have to shell $386 for one Epi pack, as school personnel is trained to use Epipens only (say thanks to Mylan Pharma for that). A patient has to have one pack (2 doses) available anytime and 2 packs (4 doses) in places where medical help may not be available within 15 to 20 min., like camps, travels, hiking trips, etc.

Unfortunately, allergy development cannot be predicted. I was told dozens of times that "there will be time when you can overgrow it", and so it goes for the last 40 years. You may want to consider any way you can think of to save money, because you have at least a few years if "living like that" ahead.

[DeeAngel]

Do you want to lose your license, because buying or using someone else's prescription is a quick way to do it, it's a felony even if it doesn't involve a controlled substance. and no it doesn't matter than you have a prescription for the same drug. Get scripts and go the old school syringe and vial route.

[KatieMI, BSN, MSN, RN]

Do you want to lose your license, because buying or using someone else's prescription is a quick way to do it, it's a felony even if it doesn't involve a controlled substance. and no it doesn't matter than you have a prescription for the same drug. Get scripts and go the old school syringe and vial route.

So, do you want to say that using a drug which was PRESCRIBED to another human being is a felony only because that particular pill or bottle was not prescribed to you, even if you both have prescriptions but yours was not filled for some reason?

I would like to see a source of this information because then I definitely have to get my business in order and be ready to spend the rest of my life behind bars. I had administered my own Epipen three times so far (two times completely on my own, one with rescue team) and aspirin two times. AFAIK, everybody made it at leadt to the hospital. I did not know I thus committed multiple crimes... I actually thought that I helped a few fellow human beings.

BTW, I bet you have no idea about what is going on in centers providing specialized care. People there quite freely sell, buy, bring from abroad and exchange short-supply meds they (or their relatives) do not need for some reason, with doctors aware and approving of these practices. As long as there is a script and the med is not in controlled substances list, nobody cares. Do all these people, according to you, also perform criminal acts?

[thatgirl98277]

The reason pharmacies in some states can not automatically substitute the generic equivalent is because some states view this as a medical device, rather than strictly a drug. BTDT.

A prescription for the less expensive alternative must state "Epinephrine auto-injector" and the appropriate dosage.

If you do have some in-date epi-pens of the correct dose that magically show up at your house, I'd suggest getting a letter from the Dr to the school, camp, "To whom it may concern" advising of the allergy protocol and use of the epi.

My cousin fhad to fight her insurance company for her epi pens after an anaphylactic reacton from an inhaled allergen requiring intubation.

HTH

[CoffeeRTC, BSN, RN]

Hmm. My script did say Epinepherine Auto injector so the name brand Epi Pen wasn't prescribed. My insurance plan automatically subs with the generic. I searched for the Adrenalkick and found it not in the formulary so it wouldn't give me the cash price. From what a few of you are saying..it sound like with a coupon it should be under a $100 or so?

Knocking on wood, I've only had a few prescriptions over the last few years for me, hubby and 5 kids. So, not using my prescription benefits before, I didn't know that I had a deductable on meds. I also didn't know that we can turn in our copays for scripts into a third party that manages the benefits for my husbands work...we get 80% covered!!! (happy dance!)

So, this is much more managable. Just need to have the money up front.

So...bottom line with this situation....it is crazy to have to navigate all of this to get meds that your child needs.

Someone mentioned the school having pens...not at this high school.

A previous posted had mentioned it being a felony to use an other persons meds. Okay. Like I mentioned above...I get it. I've never borrowed meds, took meds from another person before. But wondering out loud...What makes this any different than him using a pen that the school has from the manufacturer? He has a valid prescription and order for it.

[Not_A_Hat_Person, RN]

2). Canadian online pharmacies. Do not be afraid to use them, although you will have to shop around and wait for 6 weeks or so.

A lot of websites that claim to be Canadian pharmacies are fake storefronts, and you really can't be sure of what you're getting.

The biggest problem with trying to order EpiPens from Canada or any other country outside the U.S. is that you can't be sure of what you're getting. Most internet pharmacies claiming to be Canadian are not, says Carmen Catizone, the executive director of the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy. Frequently, they are fake storefronts selling unapproved drugs that are counterfeit or poorly made.”

In June 2015, for example, the Food and Drug Administration took action against more than 1,050 sites, seizing products being sold fraudulently as FDA-approved prescription drugs and medical devices. Catizone points out that of the almost 11,000 online drug outlets that NABP recently reviewed, only about 4 percent were operating according to U.S. laws and standards.

Epipens are sold over-the-counter in Canada. They're cheaper, but it's not legal to bring them over the border. I live an hour from the border, and it's not unusual for people here to buy meds in Canada, but if you're caught you can face penalties ranging from confiscation to arrest, even with a prescription.

According to Consumer Reports, AdrenaClick can cost as little as $140 at Wal Mart with a coupon. You might not need to get a seperate script for it.

The good news is that pharmacists in more than a dozen states, including California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Vermont, and Washington can fill an EpiPen prescription with generic Adrenaclick—without returning to their physician for a new prescription, according to the drug's manufacturer, Impax Laboratories.

[hppygr8ful, ASN, RN, EMT-I]

My BIL who has severe allergies carries a vial of epi and needles/syringes in a little case designed for diabetic supplies every one in his immediate circle both home and work knows how to use it the whole set-up costs him $10.00 Co-pay!

Hppy

On that note have you seen the cost of insulin pens? Again Insulin can be purchased over the counter for $20.00 - The cost of the pens is what people pay for convenience in diabetes care that is.

Hppy

[BeckyESRN]

You need to ask school if they have supply; Mylan Pharma gives a whole lot of samples to schools, and if yours have them, you may not need one for school. If not, you probably will have to shell $386 for one Epi pack, as school personnel is trained to use Epipens only (say thanks to Mylan Pharma for that). A patient has to have one pack (2 doses) available anytime and 2 packs (4 doses) in places where medical help may not be available within 15 to 20 min., like camps, travels, hiking trips, etc.

I'd just like to clarify; school stock epi-pens are for unknown allergies and true emergencies only. Mylan provides 1 set of each dose of epi-pen for any school with a doctor's order. These are NOT to replace a set that should be brought in by a parent.

I understand that cost is a MAJOR issue. I send out a blast to all of families with allergic children containing all of the info for Mylan's prescription savings card. I had 2 parents call me, just today, to tell me that they received 2 sets of pens for $0 copay with the coupon.

[SummitRN, BSN, RN]

A patient has to have one pack (2 doses) available anytime and 2 packs (4 doses) in places where medical help may not be available within 15 to 20 min., like camps, travels, hiking trips, etc.

Since we are talking about more remote areas... an EpiPen contains 2mL of Epinephrine 1:1000 and delivers 0.3mL. So there is a lot more in there... it just cannot be autoinjected.

I obviously advise caution since the following is not the approved use of the EpiPen, but most any WEMT knows this trick and if you travel outside of urban areas and have an EpiPen, you might want to know this technique for emergency access to the remaining 5.7 doses of Epinephrine. I've tried this on an expired EpiPen and it is quite doable, but it would obviously be more difficult in the heat of the moment and obviously there are no markings on the syringe.

Andrenalclick contains 1.1mL of Epinephrine 1:1000 but I haven't ever tried to disassemble one of those.