i would suspect they are very much at risk...because of evidence based medicine and the studies that have shown that ms medication is the most expensive chronic illness drug with the least impact...this will FORCE ms medications down. I look to england national healthcare system coverage of ms drugs, how this will be in the future...England covers ms drugs...with more strict guidelines fort when they are used....older people are treated with steroids as needed not an ms med.-----------------------------------
ms medication has been proven only to reduce relapses.....

with the oral medications comming out--that are not expensive to make like biological meds, and can have generic version in 16 more years, that will help.......

the raw material cost of of tecfidora is just pennies per pill,its the cost of development ,quality control to manufacture that are making them expensive. I think techfidera will be a ms medication for a long time

articles about the study that came out that ms meds are not cost effective.

http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/578579/?sc=rsmn

http://www.webmd.com/multiple-sclerosis/news/20110720/study-questions-cost-effectiveness-of-ms-drugs

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/07/20/us-ms-prices-idUSTRE76J6ZC20110720?feedType=RSS&feedName=health%20News


http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-07-20/biogen-bayer-ms-drugs-aren-t-cost-effective-in-u-s-study-says.html

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110720162039.htm

top tell you the truth i am looking forward to the "fallacy" of once being on an ms drug as perrson has to stay on it for the rest of their life....there won'
t be any more "RIS" ms diagnosis, early ms diagnosis, more monitoring before ms medication is started

RIS- radiological ms,,an mri was taken for something other than suspected Ms but ms lesions were found..

there will be more physical therapy covered for ms...as it is in the rest of the world,now my insurance will only pay for 3 weeks of PT a year for MS...

a greater emphasis will be placed on finding ms that would not have affected p[eople greatly--as has been said their are some people who will never know they had ms, on their autopsy it will be found they had ms...
like this lung cancer article about slow growing cancers being overtreated.

http://www.dailystrength.org/c/Multiple_Sclerosis_MS/forum/17832731-lung-cancer-can-overdiagnosed

another thing that will happen, instead of meds being OTC or by dr perscription a new class of drugs disperesed by pharmasist will emerge--------for some routine type drugs that don't need a doctors perscription----i know i am on techfidora a specialty med, in the first 2 months of use a "specialty pharmasist" called once a month to determine effectivenmess...i was really confused when a specialty pharmasist asked me if i had fallen while taking techfidora? I just instinctively said "no"---that was something i discussed with my doc not a pharmasist.

i asked my doctor charts no one as secondary progressive. she has only relapse-remitting ms patients or primary progressive ms patients

Thanks for your thoughts. I'm interested in anyone else's thoughts as well.

I wonder how much thought is going into this type of decision if it is true. It'd be better to keep people active members in work and society with medication than incapacitated in care facilities which is much more expensive anyways. I know because my dad was incapacitated with a stroke and care expenses were astronomical! I work full time and am able to contribute a lot because of medications. If I can't afford it and end up incapacitated in a care facility........The expense will still be there and no productivity on top of it! Fed-up!

One more thought..............maybe if there was less fraud and waste, there would be enough funds for those who are truly in need! This goes all across the board to all those who truly have needs and aren't just looking for the free ride. I say to them (not you guys)....come and work with me for a day. I'm paying your way...........and I'm the sick one!!!!! Sorry you guys....I'm really aggravated by the potential outcome of my original statement.

Finally had a chance to talk with someone who has clue about what is going on. Had to work all day before I could contact anyone. They told me not to worry. Lot's of phone calls coming in regarding related topics. Medications are covered, it's just copays that may go up. The whole expense is not up to the patient. Yikes! That's ridiculous. Thanks for your response nnyl1. I appreciate your thoughts. This can be a scary thing when life and limb are on the line.

If I'm reading your post right, you stated that under the new health care law Obama care that MS drugs are not going to be covered? Is it like that for all insurances?

Hi roqued8878,

i'm sorry my verbose SPECULATION made this thread unclear...my understanding of obamacare, obamacare sets a "floor" on what all insurance must provide...private insurers must cover ms drugs on a 80% patient pays 20%...but the patient now has something like a 20% of income yearly out of pocket maximum after that ms drugs are covered at 100%.

ms meds are so expensive the 20% copay may reach the yearly out of pocket maximum then the drugs are fully covered for the rest of the year........private insurance might be better than that--they just at a minimum must provide that---you would have to contact your insurance company to find out where your coverage is...


I really don't know the exact %., I'm on medicare now----but i went thru the painful experience of being newly diagnosed without insurance--so i followed obamacare because i really did not want asnyone to go thru what i went thru.

I was just SPECULATING about a possible future for ms meds...i see from you profile, you use gilenyia.... from your husband insurance? nothing changes for you....

I hope you all don't get 'screwed' by the reform. I live in Spain and see that I will never be able to move back to the US due to having MS: Even though the economy here is on the rocks, my meds are still being covered so far. Good luck!

There is information coming out that some MS patients are not able to get the medications that best help them. Their medication choices have been limited to a few, but may not include the ones that work for them. The out of pocket expenses come as a result of needing a different medication that is not covered. Then you pay the full cost on your own. The argument is this is unfair after all the progress we've made in MS and all the work patients and doctors put forth to find the right medications

Bits and pieces are coming out about it. A doctor from Atlanta is at the hearings in Washington regarding his MS patients who he is not able to treat properly because of insurance changes.

MS patients are being covered with medications, but there are some insurance issues that have resulted in changes to the coverage that people previously had. They are not able to use their previous medications because of the changes in what medications would be covered. Hope this helps. It is an overwhelming amount of information and confusion which is what sent me over the edge yesterday.

wisconsinteacher---hi i don't think i am "attacking" anyone by singling your possible situation, if it sounds that way, I'm sorry....

with your identified profession, you must have very good insurance and the new floor that obamacare has established must be a large decrease in your coverage?...i think teachers in WI traded increase in pay for increase insurance overage....insurance was inexpensive when the trades were done---then insurance/healthcare costs rose dramatically and it became a very good trade to have put into the contract...

new contracts for WI teachers are being established & it is likely the insurance won't be as generous but the pay should be better......

I'm anxious about ms drug coverage because i had lost employment/insurance then was diagnosed with ms--tremendous anxiety. Your anxiety might be because WI teacher insurance is in flux? with downward coverage likely.... insurance normally had "stepper coverage" for specialty ms meds. one of the standard ms meds must be tried befor a 2nd generation drug can be used...i used betaseron,tysabri then tecfidora.

i just read that the white house has asked insurance companies to cover out of network medication & dr. visits at in nework rates at the start of the insurance reform because of the confusion==I just read it this morning I wish i could remember where? that's what you ared referring to?