Prescription Costs

Each and every month, I pay for prescriptions. I pay for prescriptions that keep me at status quo. I pay for prescriptions that keep me as regular as a Crohn’s patient can be. At times I forget. I forget my debit card is going to get charged. For a while when things are status quo, I forget that I have Crohn’s. I feel normal, I feel free.

My bank account reminds me that I'm not free from this

Then I look at my bank account. I see it. I see the charge from the mail order company. Six dollars here, nine dollars there. Boom, the memories come back. The memories are so vivid. The memory of me waiting to be rolled into surgery for the first time to have my total colectomy. The lights, the people, it was so real. I can still smell the plastic of the oxygen tubes under my nose. I can remember waking after thirteen and a half hours to thank my surgeon for a job well done. It is amazing what can happen to spark a memory to return.

Medication costs

The 2nd part of this story goes beyond me. I feel I have it easy. I don’t have to pay much for a prescription. I belong to a strong union that believes that they must take care of their members' health. It makes me feel great, but then it makes me think.

It makes me think of the people who suffer from Crohn’s who can’t afford the top medicines to give them relief. I have spoken to friends who don’t have medical insurance and can’t afford the top medicines with Crohn’s. So what do we do? How do we fix this growing epidemic of patients with IBD who can’t afford their medicine? I know that various support groups have bombarded Capitol Hill in an effort to get all IBD medications covered for all people regardless of their income status.

Medication logistics

Another issue is the logistics of the medications. One of my medications has to be kept refrigerated. I am not able to be home during the day and therefore am not able to sign for the delivery. Instead, I have to have the medication shipped to my wife’s place of work. This requires some logistics.

Luckily for me, one of her coworker’s husbands is on a similar type of medication and also has it sent to the office. The two of them coordinate the receipt of the packages and make sure that the medications are placed under refrigeration. And then my wife has to actually remember to bring the medication home. If she forgets and I am out of it and can’t take it on the day that I am supposed to, it throws me completely off of my routine and I have to contact my doctor. It’s either this or I risk the medication sitting outside of my house unattended, unrefrigerated, and at risk of porch pirates.

All that being said, hopefully, this year there will be better legislation to help all IBD people get their medication without the high cost.