Recently my pharmacy switched mfr.from Janssen to Qualities even though thier trying to convince me the meds are the same they are not .I am not experiencing the same effective and the medication is nasty to the taste.The medication is risperiDONE ORAL.
What can you do when your pharmacy switches mfr.?
Question posted by KITTEN on 7 May 2013
Last updated on 20 July 2013
Added 7 May 2013:
How is it that pharmacies are able to switch mfr.without the consent or foreknowledge of the consumer and what position does this put the consumer in if this new mfr.medication does not work?Finally what recourse do we as consumers have when this happens or to keep it from happening?
3 Answers
Inactive
10 May 2013
I saw somewhere - sorry, don't have the reference, that the active ingredient can be as much as 20% different from the brand name. Also the inactive ingredients change quite a bit and a lot of the ingredients cause side effects and problems. It's a big race to make money, pure and simple. I agree with the above poster - a small pharmacy would be your best bet to have a say in which manufacturer you get. And sometimes the brand name isn't the most effective. If you find a pharmacy willing to work with you - never leave it. They are precious as gold! - EJ
DzooBaby
7 May 2013
At this point there is no law saying they have to tell the consumer which manufacturer they are using because the active ingredient in generics are equivalent or the same. Some pharmacies are more consumer friendly and will special order a specific generic for a patient and others will not. Most pharmacies get their medications from a middleman warehouse and the warehouse will negotiate for the best prices so generics can come from different manufacturers from time to time. If your pharmacy is one who doesnt provide customer service and order your supply from the manufacturer that you like, then your only recourse is to change pharmacies to one that is more customer service friendly. Many large pharmacies, like Walgreens, have enough business so that they dont have to cater to their customers. Smaller pharmacies are usually more willing to cater to the customer to keep the customer.
KITTEN
7 May 2013
Thank you this information is greatly appreciated .It has enabled me to handle the situation diplomatically with decorum rather than acting like a raving lunatic.Thank You Again,DzooBaby
DzooBaby
7 May 2013
It is upsetting when you pay money for a medication that doesnt work and then the pharmacy wont help! I have learned the hard way just by making inquiries and experiences of the past. I have found Walgreens to be one of the worst companies to use. They are so huge across the US that they just dont NEED business and they dont care of you are happy or not. WalMart is the same. I find CVS to be more accommodating in my area. I used to use a very small Mom and Pop business who was wonderful! They would even ask if there was a particular manufacturer that did well for me. They were a main pharmacy for a pain management group and were put out of business because the "powers that be" decided they were selling too many pain meds. Well, yes, they were right next door to a huge pain management clinic who advertised this pharmacy heavily but it ended up biting them in the behind.
So if you can find a smaller pharmacy chain or a local independent pharmacy not involved in a large country wide chain-they are usually better at providing customer service because they have to to compete with the larger pharmacies. The only other possibility you have is to use brand name if your insurance will allow. With my insurance, I CAN ask for brand name but I pay a much bigger copay for brand so it is really much more cost effective to use generic (like $10 for generic vs. $50 for brand for 30 day supply) but in some cases, I have stuck with brand and just payed the higher copay. Some insurances dont give you that option though-you have to use generic if one is available.
KITTEN
7 May 2013
Your last comment motivated me to do some additional research.I was told by my insurance company that a persons doctor can over ride the insurance company in some cases by requesting Brand Necessary with proof that the patient has already made an unsuccessful attempt at using the generic version.How that would effect copay I don't know,but I do agree that in some cases it is better to stick with Brand.Sometimes what may seem cost effective at the time will in turn effectively cost much more in the end.
rileyandme
20 July 2013
I have found the pharmacy business to be coming as de-tached and un invested in you as an individual as the DMV. IT IS A SHAME A place that suppose to provide you with something that is so nessacary for your quality of life and health has become so impersonal[I know its just business!!! ]
kaismama
7 May 2013
The active ingredient is the same, but the other ingredients can be different. This can change the absorption of the med. You can ask your pharmacist if they can get the other ones or you can change pharmacies..
Factfinder411
7 May 2013
They can change and usually if it's different they put a sticker
KITTEN
7 May 2013
I certainly appreciate your input,however been there did that to no avail,as for changing pharmacies isn't that rather time consuming they all change mfr.without the knowledge or consent of the consumer for cost effective reasons.So where does that leave us?At their mercy or should I say at the mercy of the powers that be.It should be mandatory that the pharmacies provide a heads up to their customers.
kaismama
7 May 2013
If there was a law the government would then be interfering with businesses telling them what stock they can have. Its usually the fault of the warehouse they get supplies from. Walgreens has told me that they aren't allowed to use a different supplier. All they can do is tell the supplier they have unhappy costumers. Sometimes when this happens a slight increase of dose will help. You can always complain to the FDA that these pills aren't very good. They get enough complaints and they'll check into the. manufacturer.
KITTEN
7 May 2013
Thank You for your support and the benefit of your own experience.I did report to the FDA only to find out that this particular mfr.has more than a few recalls on their medications and this is just one more that should be added to the list.
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