Posted on 04/07/2007 7:00:59 PM PDT by dangerfield
Yep - Big Brother government knows best. The most effective cold medications now require you (at least in some states) to actually see the pharmacist, they check your ID, and now in Arkansas - they actually turn the info over electronically to the government which is going to keep track of every single purchase of Drixoral or Sudafed I buy.
Kind of ironic - with the Federal Government being so "serious" about privacy that they are enforcing the HIPPA regulations like rabid dogs - yet state governments (with known poor computer security and crooked employees) can keep such records in their supposed war on Meth...
Funny how the state of Arkansas has yet to make any public statement of how effective the current anti-Meth campaign is - preventing folks from getting the more effective cold medications if it is after the pharmacy closes. But from observation and talking to local officers - they have not seen a major reduction in the cooking or supply of meth. But there are a lot more folks running around with runny noses.
I guess the Doctors are enjoying it - they get more business from folks who cannot treat their minor sinus troubles effectively and in a timely manner - thus eventually going to the Dr. when the problem grows into a secondary infection...
And in case anyone tries to tell me the replacement for Pseudoephedrin HCl is good - tell that to my sinuses that don't get significant relief from it.
And as this thread started - notice that the first reason given for banning this Asthma treatment was the ozone layer (Environment). Only after digging did someone start spouting not-so-accurate info about the medication not being effective or safe.
At least I am not likely to die from not having some cold medicine for a day. I guess the idea is to penalize those who cannot afford to go to a Dr. for a prescription and then to pay for the prescription. By FORCING everyone to go to the Dr., they have another excuse for socialized medicine to "protect the children"...
While I agree with your points, do you have a suggestion for those with no health care who can barely afford even the Primatene?
Is that why there is a shortage? Have you heard if they're discontinuing it?
So are you actually trying to die of asthma? If so, you're going about it in the right way.
If this isn't your intention, there are some steps you should take.
1. Have your regular doctor refer you to an allergist or pulmonologist, a doctor who specializes in the treatment of asthma. The specialist sees a lot more of the disease and keeps up on the latest developments more than your family doctor has time to do.
2. Take the specialist's recommendations on having pulmonary functions and allergy testing done. He needs this information to help you. Also take his recommendations about control of your living and work environments, which is essential in treating asthma. Work with him on this. Controlling asthma is a team effort between you, the doctor, and your family.
3. Be patient while you try different prescription meds to treat your case. Every case of asthma is different, so different drugs, at different dosage levels, different combinations, and different delivery systems have to be tried.
4. Never go anywhere or do anything without your rescue inhaler. It should not be something like Primatene Mist that can cause heart and circulatory problems, either. Depending on your case, you may also need to carry an Epi-pen.
5. Educate yourself about your disease. Find out through testing what treatments work for you. You may have to take responsibility for your own life and medical care. Be an informed medical consumer.
Folks, asthma is very dangerous. It kills thousands of people a year and the numbers are growing. If you got cancer you wouldn't mess around with over-the-counter medications, would you? If you had had a heart attack you wouldn't try to treat it yourself, surely? So why mess around with asthma?
I really don’t know. I never really thought about the Primatine situation until I saw this article. From a medical point of view, they should discontinue it because it isn’t a good treatment. Asthma that isn’t well controlled does have long term effects, and Primatine isn’t a good drug for asthma.
I’d rather see albuterol go over the counter than have people continue to rely on Primatine. I’m serious about the danger - I’ve seen someone come very close to dying from Primatine. And although it’s a lot less common now, at one time there were lots of others who as a result of using it weren’t controlling their asthma.
Asthma should be a self-managed disease, and a patient who understands and manages their disease is a joy. But Primatine is just plain dangerous and not good management. If you go to a doctor for asthma and that doctor doesn’t teach you to manage it yourself, get another doctor.
Most doctors will renew prescriptions for albuterol over the phone - they won’t make you come in every time you need a new one. Of course, if you’re going through too many (needing albuterol more than two or three times a week) then you need to add a long term control inhaler.
Everybody's reaction to drugs is different, and every drug has some kind of side-effect. Inhaled steroids, for example, have given some indications of increasing cataracts. I think it's pretty much a 'you picks your side effect and you makes your choice' kind of thing.
There was a theophyllin based over the counter product that gave me perfectly good control for twenty years until it was banned, then albuterol, then a combination of long-lasting brochodilators and steroids. They've all been effective, and I haven't used epi in forty years, but I always took some consolation from the knowledge that if I had a mayday attack while away from home, a temporary form of relief was a close as the nearest store.
Quantifying this decision is going to be a challenge. They'll get some of the self-adminstrators in to see doctors, but they're also going to have some unnecessary deaths. Tough call.
I think this will kill some people who will never go to the doctor for a $75 visit and a $125 inhaler when all they wanted was the occasional $15 inhaler for emergencies.
I don’t use this stuff, I use advair, but this pulling of the over the counter inhalers is retarded.
Agreed, that is true.
Question then becomes why the BS about CFCs? Nobody with half a brain actually believes asthma inhalers are destroying the ozone layer. How about some straight talk from these people?
It's no wonder no one believes anything coming from federal agencies.
Well, that's true. The thing is that patients who use inhaled steroids usually require consistent use for 25 years to start showing cataracts. Far from all of them do, and many show such improvement that they're even able to discontinue using the inhaled steroids for long periods. For something like Primatene, however, one of the side effects can be death.
Maybe if people have a life-threatening disease they should pop for the doctor visit and the inhaler. If I had a life-threatening illness and there was a drug that would keep me alive, I'd sell my clothes on Ebay to get my hands on it.
I got that letter but mine said they wouldn’t cover the inhaler she & I presently use any longer. We had a choice of 3 on their list. I called up our Dr’s right away who didn’t even know about this. Walgreens told me that this ban wasn’t to go into effect until 1/09. When my husband went to pick the new inhalers up Walgreens tried to charge him full price. He said but I have insurance...they said oh computer problem. I am now wondering how many times we have been paying full price for our meds. So now I am carefully watching out when I pay for my meds at Walgreens.
With the over-the-counter stuff on hand, there is no life-threatening issue.
I think this regulation will be MAKING emergencies.
Some people hardly use this stuff more than maybe once a month and just need to have this on hand.
The do-gooders find it quite acceptable to kill people in order to make a bogus statement about the “environment.”
Some people do die from the over the counter inhalers like Primatine. Personally, I’d rather see the more effective inhalers go over the counter,
I suppose the FDA's stand on this is that these people had better hurry up and die so that they don't endanger the precious ozone layer.
And the # of deaths will grow even more if these “experts” have their way. And to hell with victims!
Just a few.
If you live near a major city you can often get treatment through a university hospital outpatient clinic. The wait times are long, but usually the quality of care is excellent. You will not be seen by a medical student but by professors at the med school, fellows, or supervised staff physicians.
You can also take part in clinical trials for drugs that have been legalized in Europe, the UK, and Australia but haven't gotten FDA approval here yet. The drugs have plenty of study material behind them already so you know you're not taking some freako substance that's going to make your head fall off. And they're free for the duration of the study.
You can still get drugs cheaply from Mexico and Canada or England.
Finally, the last best hope of people with serious respiratory and immune disorders, the court of last resort: National Jewish Medical and Research Center. Call the Lung Line (linked on the National Jewish Hospital website) for free advice. I would advise anyone with asthma to study this site for information, and if your disease is serious enough to really impair your life, consider applying for a stay there. If you don't have insurance it can be free to go there. It is not just for people who are Jewish! As is so typical of Jewish people, the folks at NJH offer their care to anyone who needs help.
Well I suggest you wake up and smell the coffe through your unasthmatic nose, throat and lungs. Some folks have to use OTC meds because of financial constraints, for some the OTC works just fine. One size does not fit all. I find it quite arrogant that you seem to know and feel so free to state what other’s should do even though they say it does not work for them. And not everyone is so fortunate as to be able to absorb a $100 office call and a $50 prescription. I suppose if they trot on over to the emergency room you’ll have kind words....no you won't you'll be yelling about them using the ER for primary care. Phooey!
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