MARION, Iowa (KCRG) – It took Heidi Hola years, trying many different medications, to find the ADHD treatment that worked best for her son.
But after several tries, she finally found one that worked: Concerta, a name-brand medication that her son has been taking for years and that costs her an average of $55 to $75 a month.
But last week, a pharmacist told her it would cost more than $700.
“By Friday, he wouldn’t have the medicine to go to school or drive, so we had no choice but to pick it up for him,” Hora said.
She started a new job last month with new insurance, but it doesn’t cover her son’s prescriptions.
That means a drug that once cost about $70 a month now costs 10 times that amount.
“To think that his success depends on what job I have, where I work, what insurance I have … is devastating,” she said.
One pharmacy researcher says prescription costs are the result of a complex system of negotiations between drug manufacturers, insurance companies and middlemen called pharmacy benefit managers.
And newer medicines that are still trademarked can be even more expensive.
“We’ve seen people take less than prescribed to stretch out the amount of medication they take each day, which is not good for the effectiveness of the medication,” says Julie Armey, an associate professor at the University of Iowa College of Pharmacy.
Meanwhile, Hora is working with her son’s doctor to sue the insurance company, arguing that the generic drug won’t work for her son.
But until then, she’ll continue to pay hundreds more dollars.
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