Rage against the (American healthcare) machine

[claudine]

Back in December, when DH did his first Lonsurf cycle, copay was waived and it cost us nothing.
When the onc sent the prescription for cycle 2 though, it wasn't the same deal. We tried 5 different specialized pharmacies; 4 are asking monthly copays varying from $8000 to $10,000/month; one (Lumicera) said $200/month, but called back to let us know that they do not have access to Lonsurf after all.
ARG! This isn't a headache we're talking about here, it's cancer!
During DH's most recent Avastin infusion (he gets them every two weeks), we talked with his onc about this "no go" financial issue and he agreed that it would be ludicrous to pay this amount for a maintenance chemo; so he's switching DH to Xeloda,1500mg every other week, plus the Avastin infusions. Honestly, when I see how horrendous the Lonsurf side effects were, I'm glad. DH has had Xeloda in the past and tolerated well.

But still. Who can afford treatment in this country?!?

[Pagola44]

Yep that's an insane cost

[beach sunrise]

Geez Louise! Welcome to the new world of mSOC.
My xeloda rx went from $100 to $165 to now at 260.00 all with in a few refills of each other. I've thought about contacting Germany to see if they could offer cheaper and see if it would cross the border or not.

[JJH]

The title of this topic reminds me of a BBC News article about U.S. healthcare that I saw recently and that had the following header:

"Several companies are entering the American market to disrupt traditional, staid healthcare systems. They see a big opportunity to create change – and make money...

Source: https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20240126-tech-start-ups-are-giving-a-slick-makeover-to-us-healthcare-services

This is the kind of thing that happens when the venture capitalists try to get involved in healthcare...

[claudine]

I've thought about contacting Germany to see if they could offer cheaper and see if it would cross the border or not.

Worth a try; I have a friend who gets her meds from Canada (not cancer though).
I was off with the amount of Xeloda; it will be 3000mg daily (twice 1500), one week on, one week off. How much are you taking, Beach? In our case, it'll only amount to $26/month. Go figure.