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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
[email protected]Shown: posts 1 to 21 of 21. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by raisinb on November 9, 2008, at 19:59:28
My pdoc prescribed me Lexapro, instructed me not to take the generic, and wrote "do not substitute" on the rx. At the pharmacy, they charged me 88 dollars for 30 pills and informed me my insurance would only cover 22.99 of the total cost.
However, an online search seems to suggest that there isn't any generic Lexapro available in the US. If that's so, why is my insurance charging me so much? (For other high-priced meds, like Lunesta, the copay is about 35 or 45 dollars).
I'm confused...
Posted by Glydin 3.9 on November 9, 2008, at 20:21:05
In reply to Is there a generic Lexapro?, posted by raisinb on November 9, 2008, at 19:59:28
Hi rb,
Nope, no generic Lex available yet..... was to be in 2009 and that hit a SNAFU. Now I hear it will be 2012.
My RX plan tried to switch me to generic Celexa several years ago - tried it, failed it, returned to Lex. Now they've returned Lex to their formulary... maybe I wasn't the only failed switchee...
BTW, it's been a wonderful med pour moi.
Posted by yxibow on November 9, 2008, at 20:44:15
In reply to Re: Is there a generic Lexapro? » raisinb, posted by Glydin 3.9 on November 9, 2008, at 20:21:05
It is the newest SSRI so it will be a long time.
Its NDA approval NDA #021323 was August 14, 2002, so theoretically it wouldn't be until 2019. But the 17 year rule may extend earlier when it was first discovered in Phase I. The laws here in the US I'm not completely clear on but the latter may be true in which case it would be before.
Is the previous poster Canadian? Generics rules are a little different and I believe the patenting expires earlier but I'm not sure. Generics in Canada generally come from India and also from Israel like we have.
-- Jay
Posted by azalea on November 9, 2008, at 20:47:44
In reply to Is there a generic Lexapro?, posted by raisinb on November 9, 2008, at 19:59:28
Depending on what type of insurance you have, the copays may be different depending what is on the formulary. Lexapro may be expensive because there are generic SSRIs available.
One way to reduce the cost is to ask your pdoc about prescribing a larger pill and cutting it in half.
What dose of Lexapro are you taking?
> My pdoc prescribed me Lexapro, instructed me not to take the generic, and wrote "do not substitute" on the rx. At the pharmacy, they charged me 88 dollars for 30 pills and informed me my insurance would only cover 22.99 of the total cost.
>
> However, an online search seems to suggest that there isn't any generic Lexapro available in the US. If that's so, why is my insurance charging me so much? (For other high-priced meds, like Lunesta, the copay is about 35 or 45 dollars).
>
> I'm confused...
Posted by raisinb on November 9, 2008, at 21:35:05
In reply to Re: Is there a generic Lexapro? » raisinb, posted by azalea on November 9, 2008, at 20:47:44
Thank you everyone. I'm glad I have this board to get such quick help!
I'm on 10 mg of Lexapro per day. My pdoc did load me up with samples, but there's no guarantee (I don't think) that will happen every month.
I'm guessing the insurance co. is trying to push people to take Celexa instead. In the past, a call from the dr has gotten get them to cover more. I'll try that route.
Posted by azalea on November 9, 2008, at 21:40:26
In reply to Re: Is there a generic Lexapro?, posted by raisinb on November 9, 2008, at 21:35:05
The 20mg tablets are $89.99 for 30 at drugstore.com. You could break them in half and they would last 2 months.
> Thank you everyone. I'm glad I have this board to get such quick help!
>
> I'm on 10 mg of Lexapro per day. My pdoc did load me up with samples, but there's no guarantee (I don't think) that will happen every month.
>
> I'm guessing the insurance co. is trying to push people to take Celexa instead. In the past, a call from the dr has gotten get them to cover more. I'll try that route.
Posted by Phillipa on November 9, 2008, at 23:29:24
In reply to Re: Is there a generic Lexapro? » raisinb, posted by azalea on November 9, 2008, at 21:40:26
I always get largest sizes of meds and then split them to save money. Love Phillipa
Posted by yxibow on November 10, 2008, at 0:20:18
In reply to Re: Is there a generic Lexapro?, posted by Phillipa on November 9, 2008, at 23:29:24
> I always get largest sizes of meds and then split them to save money. Love Phillipa
Some psychiatrists will not prescribe this way for certain medications if they know they have an especially depressed patient and they care alot and want to keep that patient and have that patient with that much medication around to direct "take one a day" even though you're supposed to be splitting them by your doctor's office orders and even if it saves money.
-- tidings
Jay
Posted by hansi555 on November 10, 2008, at 15:23:27
In reply to Is there a generic Lexapro?, posted by raisinb on November 9, 2008, at 19:59:28
In Europe we have Seroplex also, exactly the same drug
> My pdoc prescribed me Lexapro, instructed me not to take the generic, and wrote "do not substitute" on the rx. At the pharmacy, they charged me 88 dollars for 30 pills and informed me my insurance would only cover 22.99 of the total cost.
>
> However, an online search seems to suggest that there isn't any generic Lexapro available in the US. If that's so, why is my insurance charging me so much? (For other high-priced meds, like Lunesta, the copay is about 35 or 45 dollars).
>
> I'm confused...
Posted by raisinb on November 10, 2008, at 15:57:21
In reply to Re: Is there a generic Lexapro?, posted by hansi555 on November 10, 2008, at 15:23:27
There is no generic equivalent, but the insurance company says it is a "non-preferred drug," so they do not cover much of it. If I order it online, it's $88 for a 90 day supply.
I have pretty good insurance (I'm a teacher), and they have covered much more expensive drugs. This has never happened to me before. Odd. I'm hoping the doctor can fix this.
Posted by Glydin 3.9 on November 10, 2008, at 16:51:30
In reply to this is weird, posted by raisinb on November 10, 2008, at 15:57:21
> There is no generic equivalent, but the insurance company says it is a "non-preferred drug,"
~~~ That was my experience as the RX plan removed Lex from their formulary with the thought the generic Celexa was going to be acceptable. As I posted before, it has been returned for the 2009 list.
Yes, as a non-formulary med I had to have a form faxed from the doc's office for *any* coverage. Even at that, the coverage is nothing like it would be for a formulary med.
I would suggest you look into your plan. Brand names, generics, how a step plan is formulated - confusion reigns as to what makes the YEARLY list and what doesn't - with my plan it appears to have alot of variables. Some rationales are alright and others, grr producing.
Some plans have step programs where If there is evidence that a first step med was not effective the coverage may be better. It IS a hassle but sometimes worth it..... Plans will tell you "they" aren't going to tell your doc what to prescribe BUT, the bite is, they will decide what they will cover, the circumstances in which they will cover and to what degree they will cover it.
Posted by bleauberry on November 10, 2008, at 17:22:52
In reply to Is there a generic Lexapro?, posted by raisinb on November 9, 2008, at 19:59:28
Yeah, insurance companies are weird in their decisions. I've seen cost analysis stuff done with other antidepressants, and lexapro is actually one of the most cost effective in terms of overall cost, efficacy, and avoidance of switching...all these things make the cost of treatment billed to the insurance company higher in the long run. Lexapro is one of the most cost effective meds, so why an insurance company wouldn't endorse it is weird. I saw one study where Cymbalta cost like 3 times as much as lexapro, not just because of the cost of the pills, but because of the side effects or lack of efficacy that caused a lot of people to stop it or switch which led to many more doctor visits (billed to insurance) than the people on lexapro had.
Insurance companies generally only pay a small portion of a brand name drug, regardless whether it has a generic option or not.
Someone else mentioned it already, but your best bet is to get 20mg pills and cut them in half. The 20mg won't cost much more than the 10mg, but will last twice as long, saving you a lot of money over any given time period.
And besides all this, I always preach to people to stay away from generics. Not that they don't work, well, a lot of times they don't, it's just that they aren't usually as reliable as brand, and if you are trying to duplicate what was done in FDA clinical studies to approve that drug, they used brand, not generic.
Just my own opinion and bias, but I could pull up hundreds of posts to show you why I hate generics. The fillers in the pills do make a difference. Brand is worth the cost. Just get bigger pills and cut them to size. That way they become a lot more affordable.
Going forward, if you ever start another med and it is available as generic, refuse it, insist on the brand. Use the larger dose sizes cut to custom sizes in order to afford it.
Posted by yxibow on November 11, 2008, at 0:19:56
In reply to Re: Is there a generic Lexapro?, posted by bleauberry on November 10, 2008, at 17:22:52
> Someone else mentioned it already, but your best bet is to get 20mg pills and cut them in half. The 20mg won't cost much more than the 10mg, but will last twice as long, saving you a lot of money over any given time period.
As I said, that is up to your doctor per pill. He or she is writing the prescription and if it is a controlled substance or something that can lead to overdose, they may not prescribe it that way. Its their medical license in jeopardy if you OD, not to mention their conscience and compassion.
> And besides all this, I always preach to people to stay away from generics. Not that they don't work, well, a lot of times they don't, it's just that they aren't usually as reliable as brand, and if you are trying to duplicate what was done in FDA clinical studies to approve that drug, they used brand, not generic.
I know you have issues with generics, we will agree to disagree. I think that if you start with a particular generic brand, try to keep with it -- it may require special ordering because pharmacies keep up with market rates.
As for an example with Neurontin, gabapentin made by Greenstone is theoretically a spinoff of the original manufacturer. So there are some oddities.
I see no reason for getting non-generic benzodiazepines or older beta blockers for sure -- in fact a good many aren't even manufactured by the company since they were in the lab in 1957 give or take and came out (Librium) around 1960. Also propranolol has been out for probably two to three decades.
I know there is this issue that has been mentioned about generic Wellbutrin -- I can't say anything about it since I haven't taken it for years and it made my OCD worse. At that point it was non-generic.
I don't think TCAs are made by their manufacturer, if so they are probably frightfully expensive. They are drugs of the 70s.
I've almost always taken generic Luvox, it basically dropped out after the manufacturer ran screaming from the Columbine incident and also probably low sales.
> Going forward, if you ever start another med and it is available as generic, refuse it, insist on the brand. Use the larger dose sizes cut to custom sizes in order to afford it.
You'll pay more, much more in our f* up insurance land that the US is.
-- tidings
Jay
Posted by fleeting flutterby on November 11, 2008, at 15:34:21
In reply to Is there a generic Lexapro?, posted by raisinb on November 9, 2008, at 19:59:28
Hey, haven't been here in a while.
Just wanted to say I so relate to your concern over the high cost of Lexapro-- even with insurance. Me too :o(
wanted to thank those that suggested to get a higher dose and cut it-- great idea!! I'm on 20 so I hope I can get 40mg and cut them in half-- that would be such a savings-- I'm paying over $60 a month just for this one med.
wishing you the best
flutterby-mandy
Posted by raisinb on November 11, 2008, at 16:29:00
In reply to Re: Is there a generic Lexapro? » raisinb, posted by fleeting flutterby on November 11, 2008, at 15:34:21
thanks Mandy!
And thanks everyone else. My pdoc's nurse called and says I'm definitely not the only one she's having to do battle for over Lexapro. Apparently (probably due to the economy) many of the insurance companies are simply deciding lately that they won't cover it, and if they do, they will only cover what a generic of something else would cost (22 bucks--wow, the generosity).
Posted by bleauberry on November 11, 2008, at 21:10:13
In reply to Re: Is there a generic Lexapro? » bleauberry, posted by yxibow on November 11, 2008, at 0:19:56
Obviously not all meds are available as generic or brand for reasons you mentioned.
When there is a choice, my preferred line of attack is to start with the brand. If that med works, cool, then try switching to the generic to save money. If that works, cool. If it doesn't work, go back to the brand. If someone starts on the generic, they don't do well, and then they move on to some other med, they never even had a chance to try the real stuff. As I said, I could dig up 100 posts of people who noticed huge differences between brand and generic, myself included. Some of the more popular ones have been xanax, prozac, wellbutrin, dexedrine.
When it comes to mental health, the games the insurance companies play and the cost of the prescription should have nothing at all to do with the decision of which med to take. There is too much at stake to mess around. Duplicate the clinical trials whenever possible. That means take brand if it is on the market.
That being said, to be fair, I have heard several people say they like the generic provigil from mailorder India better than brand. The point is, brand and generic often...often enough to be taken seriously...have different results.
Posted by Phillipa on November 12, 2008, at 18:48:44
In reply to Re: Is there a generic Lexapro? » yxibow, posted by bleauberry on November 11, 2008, at 21:10:13
For any benzo users Greenstone is the same as namebrand pharmacist told me and someone switched to it from brand and agreed. Made by same company. Phillipa
Posted by annabamma on November 14, 2008, at 19:27:29
In reply to Re: Is there a generic Lexapro? » raisinb, posted by Glydin 3.9 on November 9, 2008, at 20:21:05
> Hi rb,
>
> Nope, no generic Lex available yet..... was to be in 2009 and that hit a SNAFU. Now I hear it will be 2012.
>
> My RX plan tried to switch me to generic Celexa several years ago - tried it, failed it, returned to Lex. Now they've returned Lex to their formulary... maybe I wasn't the only failed switchee...
>
> BTW, it's been a wonderful med pour moi.
Did you notice much of a difference btwn the Lex and the Celexa? When I tried Celexa a while back it was ALMOST "THE ONE"-but I finally quit it because of bad memory problems-side effects.Thanks-
Posted by Glydin 3.9 on November 14, 2008, at 21:07:20
In reply to Re: Is there a generic Lexapro?, posted by annabamma on November 14, 2008, at 19:27:29
>
> > BTW, it's been a wonderful med pour moi.
> Did you notice much of a difference btwn the Lex and the Celexa? When I tried Celexa a while back it was ALMOST "THE ONE"-but I finally quit it because of bad memory problems-side effects.Thanks-
>~~~ When the switch was done, I figured I had two options - trial it and maybe it would be okay saving me money to boot or, well, lie and say I did. I opted for truth. I was on citalopram for about five weeks or so. While I did not experience a bad spiral down the drain, I did not feel nearly as well and felt my anxiety was not as well controlled. I feared returning to Lex would go as I had read of other's revisiting of a previous effective med. I found no problem going back on Lex and it's been and continues to be a good ride
Posted by Joy123 on February 9, 2012, at 0:55:35
In reply to Re: Is there a generic Lexapro?, posted by bleauberry on November 10, 2008, at 17:22:52
> Yeah, insurance companies are weird in their decisions. I've seen cost analysis stuff done with other antidepressants, and lexapro is actually one of the most cost effective in terms of overall cost, efficacy, and avoidance of switching...all these things make the cost of treatment billed to the insurance company higher in the long run. Lexapro is one of the most cost effective meds, so why an insurance company wouldn't endorse it is weird. I saw one study where Cymbalta cost like 3 times as much as lexapro, not just because of the cost of the pills, but because of the side effects or lack of efficacy that caused a lot of people to stop it or switch which led to many more doctor visits (billed to insurance) than the people on lexapro had.
>
> Insurance companies generally only pay a small portion of a brand name drug, regardless whether it has a generic option or not.
>
> Someone else mentioned it already, but your best bet is to get 20mg pills and cut them in half. The 20mg won't cost much more than the 10mg, but will last twice as long, saving you a lot of money over any given time period.
>
> And besides all this, I always preach to people to stay away from generics. Not that they don't work, well, a lot of times they don't, it's just that they aren't usually as reliable as brand, and if you are trying to duplicate what was done in FDA clinical studies to approve that drug, they used brand, not generic.
>
> Just my own opinion and bias, but I could pull up hundreds of posts to show you why I hate generics. The fillers in the pills do make a difference. Brand is worth the cost. Just get bigger pills and cut them to size. That way they become a lot more affordable.
>
> Going forward, if you ever start another med and it is available as generic, refuse it, insist on the brand. Use the larger dose sizes cut to custom sizes in order to afford it.
There is generic bio-equivalent of Lexapro, which has the same active ingredient as that of Brand Lexapro. You can find the ingredient details at International Drug Mart.
Posted by Maisey on February 10, 2012, at 15:56:42
In reply to Re: Is there a generic Lexapro?, posted by Joy123 on February 9, 2012, at 0:55:35
There is a generic - Danaxil or something like that sold in other countries. Sometimes, it is just sold under its technical name, escotalipram (don't think that's spelled right.) I was sure the patent on Lexapro was to expire in 2012 in the U.S., thus generics would be available then. I guess not b/c I haven't heard anything. There are websites where you can buy Lexapro (It is listed as escotalipram usually.) without a prescription. They're usually based in India. I've heard of people in the U.S. buying from these sites with good results, though I'm kind of scared to. From what I understand, it is not illegal for the customer if it gets stopped coming in the country or whatever - some kind of good faith buying codicil applies.
I was on Lexapro for 5 years. It did not help me remarkably, but it has been better than others I've tried esp. as far as side effects go. I haven't bought it in a while - have no idea what the cost is now. I'm afraid to find out. My doctor would like me to go back on it.
This is the end of the thread.
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