View Single Post
  #3  
Old Tue May 13, 2008, 09:03 AM
knstone knstone is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Cincinnati, OH
Posts: 118
Medicare for drugs

My experience with Medicare part D is that I pay the $4050 "out of pocket" and then pay 5% of the cost after that. For Revlimid, currently costing $8370.06/month for 10 mg caps my first months cost was $4088. Each month after the cost is at 5% or $399.57.

My retirement medical insurance switched to Medicare part D in 2008, administered by Aetna. This seems to be a trend among companies to reduce their costs for medical for retirees.

If one is on an in-clinic medication then Medicare part B covers nearly all of this. Thus Vidaza which is even higher in cost than Revlimid would be covered in the clinic and one would pay very little for it.

The oral meds are really nice to take, but clearly it costs a lot more on Medicare.

Since Vidaza is in trials for an oral version I wonder how successful it will be if ones costs are so much more for out of clinic meds.

It's ironic that the cost to administer Vidaza plus the clinic costs would be far greater for Medicare part B than an oral version would be yet the patient will pay a very large monthly cost for the oral version.
__________________
Kirby71, RAEB2 dx 2/04, Thalidomide 30 mo, Revlimid 18 mo, No resp Vidaza
6/09 2nd Thalid use, Promacta, Lowdose Dacogen added 10/09 at 40% blasts. 5/11 BMB-blasts 8%.
2/11 2nd Revl restart=good resp, Platelets drop 6/11, 3rd Thalid,+Nplate+Dacogen. 7/12 Cnts stable for 10 mo.
Reply With Quote