<p>CF,</p>
<p>interesting article. I did not realize that drug companies are still allowed to provide rebates to doctors.</p>
<p>I have couple of friends who are/were drug pushers … I mean pharmaceutical reps. And they are all telling me how harder their jobs now then before. I guess not everything was outlawed.</p>
<p>I don’t know why you would need the old list. Just the new one. Also I know generics legally only have to have a percentage of the effective substance that name brands have. If this is an issue, get your doctor on it sooner rather than later, I imagine.</p>
<p>Actually the generic is not equivalent to this brand name drug but equivalent to another brand name drug for the same condition</p>
<p>My brand name drug has no generic equivalent.</p>
<p>Poetgrl, what you need to know is how many and what drugs have been pulled off the formulary. If it is a lot, then it could be a problem.</p>
<p>
??? That makes no sense. </p>
<p>Here’s what the FDA says:
</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>[Generic</a> Drugs: Questions and Answers](<a href=“http://www.fda.gov/drugs/resourcesforyou/consumers/questionsanswers/ucm100100.htm]Generic”>Generic Drugs: Questions & Answers | FDA)</p>
<p>GP, </p>
<p>Why do you need a drug?
I thought you were in perfect health. </p>
<p>I dont get it. I dont take any drugs. My wife doesnt take any drugs. I think we are younger than you. How the heck was my plan more expensive than yours? :)</p>
<p>Look deeper. I know this from when I was the one dealing with the doctors etc at the end of my grandmothers life. The variation is in how the drug is delivered. The percentage difference in the blood stream can be as much as 5-10 percent. </p>
<p>In some cases, this might really matter. </p>
<p>But whatever. I just thought ppl reading the thread should be aware as they are checking the policies.</p>
<p>dstark, I was medically approved even with a history of taking the drug. The condition is not considered serious, I hope. I even got approved for long term care insurance and that medical underwriting is brutal.</p>
<p>“I don’t take any drugs”</p>
<p>Braggart. :)</p>
<p>Poetgrl, can you refer me to a study?</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I don’t think it’s rebates. The Avastin/Lucentis is administered by the doctor; it’s injected right into the eye. (Yuck.) The article says that Medicare pays the doctor a percentage of the drug price if the doctor actually administers the drug.</p>
<p>Why that makes sense, I don’t know. It’s no harder to inject the $2000 drug than to inject the $50 drug.</p>
<p>I’m not going to go looking for the studies. I was told this by my grandmother’s doctor, a geriatric specialist I trusted very much. I actually don’t care if you believe me, agree with me, or don’t. </p>
<p>If someone needs a specific drug, they should get in touch with their doctor.</p>
<p>I don’t know why this would be a controversial statement. And, as far as I’m concerned, it is not.</p>
<p><a href=“A New Disquiet About Some Generic Drugs - The New York Times”>A New Disquiet About Some Generic Drugs - The New York Times;
<p>“Braggart.”</p>
<p>I have to admit… I do feel good about it. :)</p>
<p>I agree. It is an accomplishment.</p>
<p>"The frustration is that it is very difficult to know if the formulary is sufficient if you are given a list of drugs "</p>
<p>It is irrelevant to most people whether someone else is getting their drug or not, only whether they can get what they have been using on a regular basis.</p>
<p>If someone has a brand spanking new chronic disease their doctor will try out different drugs that are available and fight to include what works if it is not available. </p>
<p>It sounds like the AIDS lobby is fighting for their drugs already. Other groups will do the same.</p>
<p>I went back to Healthcare.gov to enroll in a plan, and I noticed a big difference in the plans I was comparing; a difference I somehow missed before:</p>
<p>There is no tax credit/subsidy available for the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of NC Blue Advantage Silver 3500 plan, so my monthly premium would be $1550.48. </p>
<p>I feel like this question has been asked and answered numerous times, but why is the tax credit available for the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of NC Blue Select Silver 3500 plan, but not the “Advantage” plan? They are both Silver plans. The chatperson on the webpage could not answer this question.</p>
<p>I haven’t seen that issue discussed here, NJres. I thought if a person was entitled to subsidies, they could get subsidies for any plan on the exchange.</p>
<p>Nevermind… I am not sure. :)</p>
<p>Must be a website for nonresidents. I don’t have a “shop for plans” link to click on. I see, “get a quote” “Individual and Family Plans”… I don’t see any brochures, and certainly no listing of which plans have tax subsidies.</p>
<p>ok, think I found it … brochure with “subsidy eligibility information” checking it out… (thanks)</p>
<p>I don’t see anything in the brochure that says some plans are eligible for subsidies and others are not. I do see where it says that cost reductions are only available on Silver plans. </p>
<p>The issue that I ran into is that when I saw a list of plans for me adjusted with my subsidy amount which was calculated using my estimated income, there was no subsidy applied to the Advantage plan, which is a Silver plan. The subsidy was applied to their “Select” plan. I enrolled in the Select plan, but would have preferred the Advantage Plan. I don’t know why the tax credit is apparently not available for the Advantage Plan, which is a Silver Plan. Did I miss that in the brochure somewhere?</p>
<p>GP, in all seriousness: if you haven’t already, go see all the names your Rx may be called. Google or ask the pharm. I had an issue when checking D2’s meds, but was ok in the end. I had assumed there was only one brand name and one generic.</p>
<p>I did find this:
</p>
<p>so… The Silver Advantage Plan is not a catastrophic plan and not a grandfathered plan, so was the absence of a subsidy a “glitch” ?</p>
<p>I just can’t face an hour on the phone trying to explain this to someone. Maybe I will try BCBSNC tomorrow since it is their plan.</p>