Tuesday, August 23, 2011

More on Generics vs Name Brand Drugs

Photo mine. I should have taken off all the stupid foil from the top of the bottle. Dang. 

My post Go To Be in the Know was gifted with this useful comment yesterday. A reader had asked a question regarding the side effects of name brand vs generic drugs. I was able to supply a few sources that I use to do medical literature research, but had very little personal experience with the issue. Ah, but it's a very good thing that my readers are such knowledgeable people:

I am a certified managed care nurse and worked pharmacy prior authorization for a few years. When it comes to approving brand name over generic, we would ask if the generic had been tried by at least 2 manufacturers, as the inactive ingredients would be different. You can ask your pharmacy to look back in the claims to see if you have tried more than one manufacturer. If you try another and still have GI symptoms, your insurance company may grant an authorization for the brand. You can call them and see if this would be acceptable. If this doesn't work, I would recommend the appeals process, as I saw a lot of denial overturned on appeal. 

Thanks for the information.

2 comments:

ShEiLa said...

good to know.

thankfully I am ok on generic... for now. But if they change up the generic I get nervous.

If it's not broken - don't fix it!

(they just go for the best cost)

ToOdLeS.

Debbie said...

My rheumatologist only allows brand name for Methotrexate. The script specifically says NOT XXXXX(name of generic drug co.) which I will not list on the blog. However, this company makes several of my generics. I have been taking generic Plaquenil without any adverse effects.

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