My AL has hit the donut hole for his Medicare coverage. This happens for 2-3 months per year.

Aricept is 160 bucks for 30 pills. Dad is scheduled to take two per day. It has helped him a lot, and other so-called equivalents have not.

We went out of pocket, after talking with Dr. to get enough to take one per day. The difference is dramatic, and his memory function has decreased terribly.

Any ideas?

I have heard of a patch that may work but can't recall the name. I am not sure what it costs, or if he is eligible.

A note for other caregivers: Pfizer has a program that allows low-income patients to receive the drug for free. My dad qualifies in every way except one: He receives 2 medications from the VA. This disqualifies him, believe it or not.

Tomorrow I am going to call to ask if we can stop receiving the VA meds, get them through cash or another plan, and allow him to qualify.

Meanwhile, any suggestions are MOST welcome.

Exelon is the name of the patch.
There's a thread in the medication section of the board about good companies to order medications from via the mail which may cost less.

You may want to share your situation with your Dad's GP.
I know my parents doctor is loaded with samples to be given out to new patients, but the doctor uses his own discretion.
It doesn't hurt to ask the doctor directly if he/she can do anything to help out during that 2-3 month period.
Just a thought, good luck.

Lflood:

In Connecticut we have ConnPACE, which is a program to help seniors with prescription drug coverage.

Under the program, a participant would never pay more than $16.25 for a 90 day supply of a med. It has a reasonably high income qualification level of $25,100, pays the Medicare Part D premium and you never fall into the donut hole. There is a $30 annual administrative fee. This program has been a godsend for us – I have no idea how we would be able to pay for the meds without it.

I am not sure which states offer a PACE program or how the VA status affects qualifying for this or other state-run programs, but it is worth checking out. You might start with your local social services office or your local state representative. I have found both to be very helpful, particularly the aides at the senators' offices - they have a wealth of information and contacts and can help to expedite assistance. There is sometimes more help than people are aware of – unfortunately, you have to hunt it down.

Good luck and let us know how this all works out.

My MIL is in the donut hole too until January. She takes the generic for Razadyne and the price is still 164.00 a month. It's criminal that they can charge that much for a generic. The Namenda doesn't even cost that much. All the meds for Alz are very pricey.

Dear Lflood: I am so sorry for what you are facing. My step-dad has also fallen into the dread donut hole and we are paying out of pocket.

The Exelon Patch is quite expensive too. You have been given some good advice, and I think speaking to the doctor's offices; primary MD, Neuro and Psych, depending on which have seen your LO, describe your situation and ask for samples.

Also, since Neuro does MUCH prescribing, they usually have good contacts with the drug reps who come to the office. Perhaps the Neurologist would be willing to speak to the drug rep to see if they can give you a good supply of samples.

Also, I would work with local pharmacies and hospital pharmacies and see if they are willing to give you the prescription at their cost which would be much lower.

Some pharmacies have special programs for obtaining drugs at a lower cost. You can Google the names of the national chain pharmacies in your area and see what their plans entail.

I wish you the very best in this pursuit.

Johanna C.

My mom's internist once gave us a handful of Aricept sample boxes. I hadn't asked for them, but you might try asking your doctor. I think he was trying to get rid of them as they were near the expiration date.

Thnk you for the replies. I am going to look into every one.

The difference in my FIL is terrible. Two pills per day was okay. One is amazingly different. there must be some way, and we will try every avenue.

Further ideas are more than welcome, if anyone has any.

When my MIL was first diagnosed with mild dimentia, the Doc first had her on Aricept... supposedly the best of the best. Unfortunately, she had such a bad reaction to it, we had to stop within in a few weeks - constant vomiting/nausea, weakness, insomnia.

We held off on meds for a while to see how she was progressing, but she started to become abusive - mostly verbal, but occasionally physically as well. (I live with her and my Brother In-law and am her "primary" caretaker).

Doc then prescribed both NAMENDA and ZYPREXA. Wow! Both worked wonderfully! It was a bit spendy - about $150/month for everything, but WELL worth it!

We even got a sample pack of Exelon (the patch), which we tried and the only real thing I noticed was that she would get a skin irritation under the patch wherever we would place it). I didn't notice any other result from using it or not.

After a year, however, the behavior and insomnia returned and Doc says she was not responding to the meds any longer. Considering her condition and the out-of-pocket costs for test after test after test, we decided to stop these meds alltogether. Besides, there really isn't anything left to medicate as far as Alzheimer's/Dimentia goes, so we're really just treating the symptoms and not the underlying cause.

Since then, her mood really hasn't changed all that much, all things considered. She loves to yell all day long (sometimes for 30-hour stretches) at nothing in particular, and nothing we say to her will calm her down, but this is - and has been - status quo for her for a few years now... we've just learned to deal with it.

At any rate, ask about Namenda, Zyprexa, and Exelon. Also check with insurance, as many of these meds are not covered, or are only partially covered.

Always my best,

Chris

Go to:

http://alzheimers.boomja.com/F...ssistance-27304.html

There are all sorts of ideas and tools for finding financial assistance. The 4th item down the list specifically addresses ways to get financial assistance for prescription meds.