Is the CDC looking out for us?

Our country is in the midst of a huge health crisis.

According to the CDC’s recently released Annual Report on the Nation’s Health, the U.S. spends over $2 trillion a year on healthcare. In fact, according to the report, “The United States spends a larger share of its gross domestic product (GDP) on health than does any other major industrialized country.”

Even though our country spends more than $2 trillion a year on healthcare, chronic diseases are the epidemic of our generation and food-related diseases are the No. 1 cause of preventable death. The following health risk factors are analyzed in the study:

Cigarette Smoking
Participation in Leisure-time Aerobic and Muscle-strengthening Activities
Obesity Among Children
Overweight and Obesity Among Adults
Hypertension Prevalence
High Serum Total Cholesterol (240 mg/dL or Higher)

All of the above are lifestyle related and there is NO DISCUSSION in the report regarding prevention by lifestyle modification!

Our healthcare system relies on medications and surgeries as opposed instead of focusing on prevention and education. In fact, if you take the time to review the report, you will see that under the section entitled “Prevention”, there are only two sections: “Statin Drug Use” and “Influenza Vaccination”.

Our good health begins with us. We are responsible. Good health begins with daily diet and lifestyle choices. Look at your own life and ask, is there one thing you could change now that would make a difference for your health?

Prescription Drugs – at what cost?

February 1, 2011

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Prescription Drugs – at what cost?

When someone begins to take a statin drug, he/she will probably take the medication for LIFE. Imagine the economic implications associated with this – for both the patient and the pharmaceutical companies. I’ll give you a personal example:

My husband’s endocrinologist has been trying to persuade him to take a statin drug for years (see previous post). In lieu of a statin, we walked out of his office with a prescription for Niaspan (extended-release niacin tablets).

Before we left his office, the doctor kindly gave us a few samples and an expired offer from Abbott Laboratories containing a card that allows us to obtain the drug for $5/month (certain conditions apply, i.e., if my husband registers to an educational program that supplies him with their product literature). The doctor suggested that we call Abbot laboratories and ask them if they would honor the offer, so we called the company. They agreed to send us a new card in a few weeks. In the meantime, we took the prescription to the pharmacy and were astounded when our co-payment (after insurance) was $70.01. We inquired as to the retail price of the drug and were told that the retail price was $75.99.

As it happens, consumers now may not be able to shop around for the best prices for medications because the pharmacist doesn’t have any idea what the co-payment amount is until AFTER they have filed the claim with the insurance company. By that time, the prescription has been filled. To provide you with a cost comparison, a pharmaceutical grade, non-prescription, sustained release Niacin retails for approximately $11. I know there is a difference between extended release and sustained release, but it shouldn’t be so much that the cost would increase sevenfold.This is for a vitamin, for goodness’ sake!

I called our insurance company to find out about the co-payment amount and was told that the actual co-payment for the prescription is really ONLY $50, but since we had not yet met our yearly deductible amount, our cost was $70.01. As a consumer, I would have no clear way of understanding this without spending a lot of time on the phone with the insurance company, since there is no itemized statement provided with a breakdown of the costs.

What is the real cost of the drug? Why is Abbott laboratories so eager to give the drug to new patients for the first year at $5/month? Who subsidizes the $5/month offer to new patients? How can consumers be better represented in this process?

Niaspan, at a retail cost of $75.99/month, easily earns the drug manufacturer approximately $900/year per patient. This medication (which is a VITAMIN) is being prescribed to thousands of patients, who will probably have to take the drug for many years (or for life).

So who really wins?

My guess is that the real winner here is the Pharmaceutical Company.

What’s your guess?

Why it’s important to question your doctor

January 25, 2011

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Why it’s important to question your doctor

Over the past several years, my husband has been under the care of an endocrinologist for the treatment of diabetes. My husband’s overall cholesterol level is good, but his LDL/HDL ratio is not, so at almost every visit, the Dr. has tried to sway him to utilize a statin medication.

What is a statin?
Statins are usually used to lower cholesterol.They work by blocking the body’s ability to produce cholesterol and by helping your body reabsorb plaque that has built up on the artery walls, hopefully preventing additional blockage in the artery and thus preventing heart attacks. However, the use of statins does not come without side effects, which may include depression, muscle pain and weakness, neuropathy, heart failure, dizziness, cognitive impairment, cancer, pancreatitis and liver damage). According to the National Health Alliance, “a recent study shows that the statin drug simvastatin, which the government is advocating we take to lower cholesterol levels, actually weakens our immune system and makes it difficult to fight off bacterial infections.” and that high cholesterol actually protects us against infection!

Now, getting back to my story:

At our first visit, we questioned the Dr. at length about the source of the clinical studies on which he based his recommendation, we felt that the potential risks involved by far outweighed the KNOWN benefits of the drug for a man his age. At almost every visit, my husband listened to the recommendation for a statin drug, but walked away without taking the Rx. A few months ago, my husband was seen by a Nurse Practitioner (NP) instead of by the Doctor. The NP was very patient in answering all of our questions. We asked her about the use of Red Yeast Rice or Niacin in lieu of a statin. She said that she has seen positive results from both and suggested that he try the Red Yeast Rice first and if that did not help, that he try the Niacin.

Last month, the Dr. was still recommending the use of a statin medication. We asked him if it would not be wise for my husband to try Niacin instead, as we had previously discussed with the NP, and he looked at the latest lab results before answering. I must say that I was quite surprised at his response:

He said that he usually prescribes statins to his diabetic patients because it is believed that the statins reduce the risk of coronary disease. However, in my husband’s case, the statins wouldn’t work. In fact, Niacin would be a better option.

He further explained that the reason he recommends niacin instead of a statin is because, in his case the bad cholesterol is fine but the good cholesterol is low. So why did he not recommend niacin earlier?

What if we had never asked?

By the way, when someone begins to take a statin, he/she will probably take the medication for LIFE. Imagine the economic implications associated with this – for both the patient and the pharmaceutical companies. More about this later…

Sources:

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/statins/CL00010
http://www.westonaprice.org/modern-diseases/cardiovascular-disease/581-dangers-of-statin-drugs.html
http://www.anh-usa.org/statin-drugs-open-us-up-to-foodborne-illnesses/

*Note – My husband has graciously given me permission to write about him on this very important topic.