There are plenty of programs available, some of which are paid for by drug manufacturers. Your local Members of Congress, State Congress and Federal Congress, and their staff are there to help you.
We also have some info in our group's File section.
Fibromyalgia is a rheumatic disease. If your friend was misdiagnosed, she could suffer from Seronegative rheumatoid arthritis, just like myself.
The telling signs of Seronegative rheumatoid arthritis are the following:
- Joint pain in the feet (or cracking ankles) in the early 20's;
- Fatigue;
- Joint deformities of the fingers, a specific sign of rheumatoid arthritis;
- Negative or low level of Rheumatoid factor;
- X-Rays showing bone erosion, a consequence of rheumatoid arthritis;
- Generalized arthritis, involving the whole body;
- Elevated levels of C-Reactive protein and Sedimentation rate.
NSAIDs like Voltaren, COX-2 inhibitors like Celebrex, acetaminophen like Tylenol, and codeine are all used to control inflammation and relieve the pain of arthritis and fibromyalgia.
A low dosage of antidepressant, 25 mg or 50 mg, at bedtime, can be used to relax muscle and provide significant relief for rheumatic patients.
Regular exercise like walking, biking and swimming are also helpful for most patients. Make sure that your friend is not overweight as carrying too much weight can only increase the pain of arthritis.
Your friend should consult an Orthopaedist who will order blood tests, joint scans and X-Rays to better diagnose the type of arthritis from which she suffers.
Lyme disease could be a possibility. Ask the doctor to test your friend for the bacteria causing Lyme disease.
Are there any other cases of arthritis or rheumatic diseases among her relatives? Chronic forms of arthritis are usually prevalent in families where a defective gene is passed on by parents to their children.
There are a few hundred types of arthritis and rheumatic diseases. The good news is that science is progressing rapidly in its understanding of rheumatic diseases.
Antibiotics are now used to achieve full remissions for at least 40%, if not 65% of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Fibromyalgia is even easier to treat. For more info, please join our group at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/antibio
Free Prescription Drugs: Too Good To Be True?
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Aug. 26, 2000 (CBS) Many patients may not be aware that there are prescription drugs available for those who could not afford to pay for the high cost of medications. And it is true, they are free.
Julia Erwin cannot afford the chemotherapy she needs in her battle against breast cancer. "It would have been so expensive, I think for one month, $4000," says Erwin, a cancer patient.
That's exactly why she's getting her medication for FREE, thanks to the aggressiveness of her doctor and his staff.
"Free medications are readily available and they should be used, because that's what they are there for," says Denise Seth-Hunter, doctor's office administrator.
They are readily available because of little-publicized assistance programs sponsored by the pharmaceutical industry. This year alone, drug companies will give away almost a billion dollars' worth of prescription drugs to two million Americans, patients like Donna Betsch and her family.
Betsch works two jobs, both without benefits and makes about $30,000 a year. Her husband has been unemployed since January. "You have to pay rent, you have to pay for food," says Betsch. "I have two children, so right now to buy health insurance, it's astronomical. For me, it's impossible."
She and her daughter both need thyroid medicine. Everyday her husband has to take blood pressure pills. And today she's applying for free ulcer medication. A doctor can certify that it is a hardship for her to pay for the medication, then, she will be given a three-month's supplies.
To qualify, applicants must show they have no insurance coverage for outpatient prescription drugs; that their income must be low enough that paying for medicine would pose a hardship; and that they do not qualify for Medicaid. In some cases, households with incomes as high as $50,000 can receive free drugs.
Who Qualifies?
NO INSURANCE COVERAGE
INCOME IS AT HARDSHIP LEVELS
NOT QUALIFIED FOR MEDICAID
UP TO $50,000 INCOME
What a patient should do is get in touch with their individual doctor to be able to determine whether they will be eligible for a specific program, for a specific medicine. Patients must apply for the free medicines through their physician. But some doctors say the process can be daunting.
"A lot of the paperwork is very complicated," says Dr. Kevin Maloney, a family physician. "Some of the forms that the pharmaceutical companies require are a pain in the neck to do."
But a non-profit organization, called The Medicine Program, can help simplify the application process. "Our purpose has been to spread the word," says Dan Hogg of The Medicine Program. "We just serve as a middleman, a patient's advocate."
For just $5, refundable if you don't qualify for the free drugs, The Medicine Program helps physicians and patients fill out the forms and get them to the right pharmaceutical company.
"You should not be embarrassed or ashamed," says Denise Seth-Hunter, doctor's office administrator. "You should seek what you can get for free, and it's out there for anybody who wants it."
Average prices for prescription drugs in the United States are the highest in the world, hitting the uninsured and seniors the hardest. A recent study indicates that elderly health care costs now run an average of $12,000 a year - making these prescription drug assistance programs even more important – if only people in need knew they existed.
Useful Web Sites
http://www.helpingpatients.org
(patient assistance programs by 48 drug manufacturers)
http://www.phrma.org
Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America
(assistance programs listed by drug manufacturer)
http://www.medicineprogram.com
The Medicine Program
(for assistance in filling out forms to enroll in one or more of the many patient assistance programs)
http://www.rxassist.org/default.cfm
Volunteers in Health Care
(options for prescription assistance)
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