Expensive Meds

My mom wanted me to do some research on a drug that her doctor was recommending. So I did a Google search. Printed out a bunch of pages from some reputable government sites. My mom read up on the drug and figured it was the right treatment. Then she got the bad news. This drug costs a fortune. Luckily mom has some insurance. However her copay for each treatment of the drug is a whopping $700 plus.

Mom tried to research some public assitance for obtaining the drug. However she could not get in touch with anybody. She and my dad decided they needed to move forward with treatments using the drug. Initially mom is going to get three doses of the drug (at $700 a pop each time). Then the doctor will review the results, and she will probably have to receive more treatments.

Mom said the only protection she has is that there is a maximum out of pocket expense limit from her insurance. After she pays a certain amount in a calendar year, the insurance will pick up the rest of the costs. It is still a lot of money that my parents need to spend. I guess they decided there was only one option available. Pay the big fees so mom can live.

I thought perhaps the materials used to manufacture the drug were themselves rare and very expensive. My mom thought it was more that the drug is very specific and not widely used. Therefore the limited number of patients using the drug need to absorb the huge costs.