Good idea to refill your prescriptions now

[funtime]

It turns out that the US pharmacy manufacturers rely on ingredients from China and they anticipate a severe supply chain problem soon. It is wise to renew your prescriptions now.

 

[Luanne]

It turns out that the US pharmacy manufacturers rely on ingredients from China and they anticipate a severe supply chain problem soon. It is wise to renew your prescriptions now.

As long as you can. I am limited as to when I can refill based on the last date I refilled a prescription. I can't do it early, or my insurance won't cover it.

 

[isisdave]

You can often get an advance fill authorized by telling them you're going on a long trip and will be overseas at the normal refill time.

 

[Luanne]

You can often get an advance fill authorized by telling them you're going on a long trip and will be overseas at the normal refill time.

Yes, and if that were the case I'd have no problem asking for an advance.

I tried doing that once, we weren't traveling overseas, but were going to be out of town. Nope, the pharmacy wouldn't do it. I was told I'd need to get the refill in Boston, where we were going to be, at a CVS there. Luckily I was able to get it filled right before we left.

 

[VacationForever]

I always request a refill a few days before it is due so that I can slowly stockpile. We have 6 months supply of most of our medications now.

 

[Talent312]

Even though I take the same set of pills everyday, I've somehow managed to accumulate a wide variety in reserve I think it's that some were adjusted mid-stream and some were partly office freebies. For me, the situation presents a conundrum: Do I keep refilling all at the same time (maintaining the disparity), or do I delay those with extra in reserve (trying to equalize the reserve)?

 

[Timeshare Von]

It turns out that the US pharmacy manufacturers rely on ingredients from China and they anticipate a severe supply chain problem soon. It is wise to renew your prescriptions now.

This should be concerning beyond *just* the coronavirus. It's a shame we're dependent on China for ANYthing!

 

[WVBaker]

It turns out that the US pharmacy manufacturers rely on ingredients from China and they anticipate a severe supply chain problem soon. It is wise to renew your prescriptions now.

Your source for this?

 

[MULTIZ321]

U.S. Dependence on Pharmaceutical Products From China.

U.S. Dependence on Pharmaceutical Products From China

Last month, the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission held a hearing on the United States’ growing reliance on China's pharmaceutical pr…

www.cfr.org

.


Richard

 

[BM243923]

I take a blood pressure medication and I was told the strength I take is not available till May. They gave me a higher strength and I have to cut in half.

 

[WVBaker]

U.S. Dependence on Pharmaceutical Products From China.

U.S. Dependence on Pharmaceutical Products From China

Last month, the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission held a hearing on the United States’ growing reliance on China's pharmaceutical pr…

www.cfr.org

.

"In addition, when highlighting our dependence on Chinese-made pharmaceuticals, we could overlook the other side of the coin: China needs finished drugs made in the United States. China is facing a crisis of non-communicable diseases, including cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and diabetes. It is estimated that between 2002 and 2016, new cancer cases in China increased by more than 55 percent, from 2.19 million to 3.8 million"

"At present, instead of looking at the issue from a national security perspective, the best approach is to work with China to ensure the safety and efficacy of their pharmaceutical products."


Dependence on China, as well as other nations, including India and Canada, for pharmaceuticals goes back many years. There should be no denying this. None of our medications should come from anywhere but the USA. The one reason why we don't manufacture our own drugs, is corporate greed. Quite simply, it's cheaper to do it outside the U.S. Always has been and always will be.

If you were in elementary school in the early 1950s, chances are that you had the fear of nuclear holocaust drummed into you with fair regularity. Children were taught “duck and cover” techniques, which typically meant hiding under their desks as if that would save them from an atomic bomb landing nearby.

Anticipating a severe supply chain of pharmaceuticals is reminiscent of this type of propaganda.

 

[funtime]

Thank you Richard for posting the explanatory article. FYI, I heard it on a business talk show. If you are able to, like I was yesterday, to re-order prescription early, there really is no downside. It is not a matter of propaganda, or paranoia, but prudence.

 

[TheTimeTraveler]

I always request a refill a few days before it is due so that I can slowly stockpile. We have 6 months supply of most of our medications now.

Are you paying out of pocket or is insurance paying for your scripts?



.

 

[VacationForever]

Are you paying out of pocket or is insurance paying for your scripts?

It is under insurance but I have to pay whatever is the co-pay. I have been stockpiling prescriptions for as long as I remember. When I get to 6 months supply, I would just delay one refill for a couple of weeks.

 

[Talent312]

This reminds me: I start Medicare in a few days, so...
I need to load up on my brand-name drug, b4 the higher costs kicks in. I plan to visit my doc's office to change the Rx and show them my new insurance cards.
.

 

[WinniWoman]

It is under insurance but I have to pay whatever is the co-pay. I have been stockpiling prescriptions for as long as I remember. When I get to 6 months supply, I would just delay one refill for a couple of weeks.

My husband’s insurance in the past did not allow for that except a one time travel supply ( one months). I am surprised people are able to stockpile drugs. Today the pharmacies and docs are paranoid about people abusing drugs, etc. and make getting prescriptions very hard.

 

[VacationForever]

My husband’s insurance in the past did not allow for that except a one time travel supply ( one months). I am surprised people are able to stockpile drugs. Today the pharmacies and docs are paranoid about people abusing drugs, etc. and make getting prescriptions very hard.

I didn't have an issue with Kaiser, BCBS and now United Health. Every round of prescriptions I just get it 3 to 5 days earlier and before long I have 6 months stock. Kaiser allowed prescriptions to be filled one month before the 3 months supply run out. BCBS and United Health allow up to about 5 days before for 30-day refill.

 

[simpsontruckdriver]

Here is how you can do it and your insurance will pay for it. If you are eligible for online (aka 3 month supply), find out what you need to do. Then, go to your doctor for your Annual Exam (free) and get a new 3-month supply. Give yourself a couple weeks before the mail-order begins, so if you're low on your supply, get a 30-day supply to hold yourself over. You will most likely save $$$. I know Humana has their own, Aetna uses CVS mail-order, United Healthcare uses Optum (essentially the same company). If your insurer does not have their own mail-order pharmacy, they will let you know which ones you can use.

TS

 

[Talent312]

I just got a new Rx for a 90-day supply of a brand-name that's being processed now, before my current insurance ends on 2/29 and my medicare plan starts on 3/1. Waiting until next week wouldn't made much difference, but for now, it'll gives me a 3-month break before the higher payments kick in.

 

[MULTIZ321]

Drug shortages likely from India, China as coronavirus spreads.

Drug shortages likely from India, China as coronavirus spreads

The global spread of the coronavirus has started to affect the supply of antibiotics and vitamins out of India and China.

www.foxnews.com

.


Richard

 

[Ironwood]

Most drugs we consume come out of labs in China and India....should we be putting anything in our mouths from there?

 

[bogey21]

I am surprised people are able to stockpile drugs.

I'm on Eliquis, a relatively expensive blood thinner. From time to time my Cardiologist has given me 30 day Physician's sample packs which have enabled me to build a 3 or 4 month reserve. I note that the bottle says it is manufactured in Switzerland...

George

 

[MULTIZ321]

Pharmacists quietly panicking over looming
respiratory drug shortage.

Pharmacists quietly panicking over looming respiratory drug shortage

As face masks, hand sanitizers and rubber gloves fly off store shelves, pharmacists are quietly fretting over a looming shortage of vital prescription medications. On Thursday pharmaceutical manufa…

nypost.com

.


Richard

 

[MULTIZ321]

India Makes Most ofthe World's Formulated Medicines. And Then Coronavirus Hit.

India Makes Most of the World’s Formulated Medicines. And Then Coronavirus Hit.

But China gives them the ingredients--and thanks to Covid-19, there is a shortage. Yikes.

nationalinterest.org

.


Richard

 

[WVBaker]

Judge Jeanine Pirro slammed the media Saturday night for stoking the flames of the coronavirus panic.

"If you listen to the mainstream media, it's time to buy the family burial plot, visit the cemetery where the dirt is definitely cleaner than your kitchen counter or your bathroom handles," Pirro said on "Justice with Judge Jeanine."

"So what's the downside of their doomsday reporting? The downside is predictable. When people are scared, when people think it's just a question of time before they start dropping like flies, they go into survival mode," Pirro said. "They don't spend money. The economy suffers. They don't invest. The market suffers. They talk about taking their children out of school. Education suffers. They talk about canceling March Madness, Coachella and local businesses suffer."

Pirro downplayed the manufactured panic, saying, "As the weather warms, fewer and fewer people will get sick with the virus. Some of the meds need to be left for people who may need them."