SUBOXONE FILM PATENT EXPIRES AUGUST 2013

as for people who are self employed and have no medical ins. we are screwed cause if you are not a preg woman or elderly then you dont qualify for any assistance and if you people who make the drug and are serious about helping addicts you would have a more affordable solution cause the prices now are crazy it cost more to quit than it does to just buy opiates off the street and i dont care how you look at it something is really wrong with that picture
 






as for people who are self employed and have no medical ins. we are screwed cause if you are not a preg woman or elderly then you dont qualify for any assistance and if you people who make the drug and are serious about helping addicts you would have a more affordable solution cause the prices now are crazy it cost more to quit than it does to just buy opiates off the street and i dont care how you look at it something is really wrong with that picture

bullshit
 






I call bullshit too. Unfortunately, this disease requires a lot of investment on every level. The highest expense cost is the docs only accepting cash payments. That is who you should really have your complaints with.
 






Well if your self employed and you could afford to support a daily illicit habit, I would imagine that getting into treatment would allow you to focus on your business or whatever you do to be self employed and generate more income? Im sure it would be quite hard to run your own business while high? And to compare buying drugs off the street to treatment tells me you still don't get that is illegal.
 






Well, first off I don't know that I would say that people who are using opioids to the point that they are addicted are what you would call 'high' all the time. Eventually the euphoric and intoxicant effects of the drug wane, doses stabilize, and people just feed their habit.

The issue is that making that initial step to get into treatment to begin with is not easy. Even if somebody is making a decent amount of money, they are usually seeing it leave their hands before the day is over due to their normal operating expenses in conjunction with the heavy price of the illicit drugs. So while somebody might one day say, 'hey I need to get off my butt and get some treatment,' it can takes weeks, or possibly even months, to find a doctor. If during that time you have one bad week, no make that one bad day, of business, you're going to 'fall behind' in a serious way, and given that you need the drugs to make it to work at all(along with the addiction itself pressing you to use), you're going to prioritize the illicit drugs under the rationalization that you might be left detoxing during a time when you need to be hustling to make the rent money if you don't.

So while you might have had the money last week, there's no guarantee you'll have it by the time the doctor's appointment rolls around. It's a day to day 'lifestyle' that is taken on, even 'high functioning' addicts are prone to stumble at any moment and fall off the barge.

However, that's getting off topic.

The thing here is that a generic alternative, while a bad thing for RB, would result in lower prices of treatment and thus make it easier for addicts of all socioeconomic statuses and backgrounds to partake of it. This is a far cry from demanding 'free' treatment from 'welfare.' I am truly not sure how the patent benefits the consumers of this product one bit.
 






All you BR heads should be worried about losing your jobs, or at least coming up with a more competitive price for your medication. BioDelivery Systems is applying for FDA approval quarter 2 of this year. Should ease the pain on my, and fellow recovering addicts pocketbooks.

FYI, I'm a college student graduating in March and an Army veteran. Been on Suboxone for almost ten years. Saved my life but is killing me financially. I'd love proof of that "90% of patients are insured" nonsense.

You speak of getting the price down but still making money, and how that's business. Well, in business competition is best for the consumer. Took a while but God bless the free market.
 






Medicine is never going to be free nor has it been. Nor should it be! We all pay for it, yes all of us. A vet with no ins.? No tricare,vhc nothing? If there is truth here, you can usually get a free pharmacy benefit card at your local pharmacy to help with cost of meds. Not sure what the % is, but something is better than nothing. Not making light of your ten years, that is a huge. Field employees have nada to do with price. It’s a for profit industry. And it should be. People bitch about the price of every medicine. Just like they do gas and cigs. However there has never been a valid reason for it being free. Besides the reason, I’m on it, Hard to afford, it’s not fair and the list goes on. If the average person stopped smoking or cut the habit in half how much money in the pocket? Stopped paying for the premium cell phone and plan (yeah right), don’t get premium cable, or that mac and the list goes on. There is a shift in priorities of the things we want vs. the things we need.
 






Medicine is never going to be free nor has it been. Nor should it be! We all pay for it, yes all of us. A vet with no ins.? No tricare,vhc nothing? If there is truth here, you can usually get a free pharmacy benefit card at your local pharmacy to help with cost of meds. Not sure what the % is, but something is better than nothing. Not making light of your ten years, that is a huge. Field employees have nada to do with price. It’s a for profit industry. And it should be. People bitch about the price of every medicine. Just like they do gas and cigs. However there has never been a valid reason for it being free. Besides the reason, I’m on it, Hard to afford, it’s not fair and the list goes on. If the average person stopped smoking or cut the habit in half how much money in the pocket? Stopped paying for the premium cell phone and plan (yeah right), don’t get premium cable, or that mac and the list goes on. There is a shift in priorities of the things we want vs. the things we need.

I rarely post but I have to say that I agree with "most" of this post. Especially priority part well stated.
 






Medicine is never going to be free nor has it been. Nor should it be! We all pay for it, yes all of us. A vet with no ins.? No tricare,vhc nothing? If there is truth here, you can usually get a free pharmacy benefit card at your local pharmacy to help with cost of meds. Not sure what the % is, but something is better than nothing. Not making light of your ten years, that is a huge. Field employees have nada to do with price. It’s a for profit industry. And it should be. People bitch about the price of every medicine. Just like they do gas and cigs. However there has never been a valid reason for it being free. Besides the reason, I’m on it, Hard to afford, it’s not fair and the list goes on. If the average person stopped smoking or cut the habit in half how much money in the pocket? Stopped paying for the premium cell phone and plan (yeah right), don’t get premium cable, or that mac and the list goes on. There is a shift in priorities of the things we want vs. the things we need.

Very well said. I have walked in to many offices to speak with my docs, and have seen Suboxone patients waiting...SO MANY have iphones and are playing on the internet while waiting, or they are outside as I walk in, smoking cigs. You complain about the price of Suboxone, but can't drop that big data plan? Can't quit that $6 pack a day (that's $180) smoking habit? It's our entitlement society. No one wants to have to actually PAY for what they NEED. They'll pay all day for what they WANT. Well, my friends, Suboxone is what you NEED to stay clean, not an iphone with unlimited data, or cigarettes.
 






Suboxone is what you need to stay clean? You have to be kidding. Just because Suboxone is a partial agonist and the drug addict doesn't feel as high doesn't mean that they are clean. Many people on Suboxone eventually see what it is, just another drug to replace their former drug of choice. They need it to get out of bed in the morning. How is this different from the heroin addict who needs to dose before walking to the store for a pack of cigarettes? The fact that buprenorphine has such a long half life is what really causes the harm. You guys are worried about losing your job at RB but seem honestly ignorant of how the drug that provdes your income works. The difference between someone who uses oxycontin or heroin and someone that uses suboxone is the fact that when on subs you are CONSTANTLY high. It has what a 36 hour half life? Your prescribed a dose a day so your brain is NEVER functioning without bupe. It varies from person to person but eventually most see the day when they are feeling like shit. Chronic fatigue, a lack of motivation, and a general fog are common in long term users. This is caused by a combination of decreased neurotransmitter production and temporary shut down of specific receptor sites. Because of the long half life and the fact that someone who is prescribed suboxone always has bupe in their system the period of withdrawals is way longer than with other drugs and post acute withdrawal symptom is longer and more common.

You talk about this drug like it is saving addicts. I have a friend who started on the sub program recently and he messaged me tonight asking where to get subs. Said his brother took his last tab. I told him "No , not only do I not know anyone who sells but I wold not tell you if I did. The shit is horrible for you and I told you not to start the program...." This person wasn't even anything close to a full blown addict before starting the program. I recieved a text a few hours later stating that his dad had a heart attack and he was in the hospital. He kept bringing up the necessity of a sub so I called the hospital.. Guess what.. His father didn't have a heart attack. He was trying to get me to feel sympathetic for him so I would support his addiction. Does this not sound like a typical addict to you?

I have watched too many friends get on the sub program with full intentions of kicking drugs completely only to be in the exact same position 2,4,5 years later. The fact that doctors are prescribing 8 mgs let alone 16+ is mind blowing! There is no reason! Done explaining things for now. Research the ceiling effect if you care to learn.

I am a 24 year old recovered addict. I was easily one of the smartest kids in my school and it is very unfortunate that I made the decisions I did. Where I live addiction is very common in the younger generations (~15-25). As a user of 6 years I only saw heroin in town once and only heard of it around 2-3 times. Meth isn't an issue here.. All pharmecuticals. The industy you work for is destroying people and it is a shame that money and greed have made this world, especially this nation, what it has. I understand you guys being worried about losing your jobs. I can even understand you feeling satisfied because you obtained a job making big bucks. Unfortunately being the big winner isn't what should be important in this world, it should be helping out your fellow man and truly contributing to society for the greater good. We are all human, we are all the same. The fact that you can look at the drug addicts you are supposed to be helping and talk about their life filled with crime and whatnot breaks my heart. I have found that most people have a reason for being the way they are, and this especially rings true for addicts. While there are people out there who do overcome the odds, do escape the rough neighborhood where they grew up or the abusive parent they were born with without major issues, most do not.

Do you guys still not know the deal with your job? I find it pretty funny that a 24 year old completely uninvolved with RB seems to know more about the companies future than its own employees. I will tell you if need be, as for now I need to get some sleep.

Please, try to love your fellow humans. If anyone would like to actually read firsthand accounts of the bad side of subs I will gladly direct you to the website. I am not going to put it out there so you can insult people who are fighting to get clean, fighting for their lives. Yes, I was on suboxone myself. Was it bupe that got me clean? Not hardly, another substance is never the answer to a drug addiction. I wish you all the best.
 












Yikes. I came on here to do a little research for my blog about pain pill addiction and its treatment. I've read the biggest pile of steaming feces on here, from addicts and RB employees.
About a third of my 100 patients are self-pay. They sacrifice much to be able to stay in treatment. For those who have been doing well, I switched to the generic film as the Suboxone prices went up, and after the tabs were discontinued. Yes, the monoproduct has a higher risk of diversion (but isn't diversion-proof, as we know) but it's a reasonable option for someone doing well in recovery. Were it not for the generic, many people doing very well in recovery would have dropped out of treatment.
All of this is to say that at first, I admired the work RB did for addicts. Not too many drug companies are willing to market a drug for addicts. But now, my goodwill towards RB is wearing very thin. And they have somehow convinced BCBS not to cover a CHEAPER generic. WTF??
And it does grieve me to read addicts putting down the very people who want to help them, saying they gouge people for money, make money off other people's illness...yada yada. Reality check: in this country, healthcare is a business. It's not a right, it's a privildge. I'm not saying I agree, but that's the way it is. Every other person with a medical illness has to pay for mes and treatment. If they don't have insurance or Medicaid they do without or pay out of pocket. Most do without, until they become critically ill, then show up at the hospital ER. I know what I'm talking about - I was a primary care doctor for over ten years until I got sick of it and decided to treat addicts, since they actually get better.
 












Yikes. I came on here to do a little research for my blog about pain pill addiction and its treatment. I've read the biggest pile of steaming feces on here, from addicts and RB employees.
About a third of my 100 patients are self-pay. They sacrifice much to be able to stay in treatment. For those who have been doing well, I switched to the generic film as the Suboxone prices went up, and after the tabs were discontinued. Yes, the monoproduct has a higher risk of diversion (but isn't diversion-proof, as we know) but it's a reasonable option for someone doing well in recovery. Were it not for the generic, many people doing very well in recovery would have dropped out of treatment.
All of this is to say that at first, I admired the work RB did for addicts. Not too many drug companies are willing to market a drug for addicts. But now, my goodwill towards RB is wearing very thin. And they have somehow convinced BCBS not to cover a CHEAPER generic. WTF??
And it does grieve me to read addicts putting down the very people who want to help them, saying they gouge people for money, make money off other people's illness...yada yada. Reality check: in this country, healthcare is a business. It's not a right, it's a privildge. I'm not saying I agree, but that's the way it is. Every other person with a medical illness has to pay for mes and treatment. If they don't have insurance or Medicaid they do without or pay out of pocket. Most do without, until they become critically ill, then show up at the hospital ER. I know what I'm talking about - I was a primary care doctor for over ten years until I got sick of it and decided to treat addicts, since they actually get better.

This a rep, not a physician or practitioner. I do not see a physician starting a paragraph with "yikes" and ending it with "WTF". Not even close.
 












I'm not sure where you guys screaming "nothing should be free" etc. etc. plays into the fact that BR has had a near exclusive monopoly on this drug for far FAR too long. I don't see where the previous posters were asking for free medicine but rather that prices reach a more reasonable and maintainable level.

I just heard that BC/BS is no longer going to pay for more than 2 strips per day. I take Suboxone for pain management because I do NOT want to take Oxycontin or other more addictive drugs. Thanks to the lobbying efforts of BR, not only am I no longer going to be able to afford my medicine but I now will have to go back to suffering 1/2 the day. Suboxone was the first pain medication that covered my pain from sun up to sun down. BRs monopoly and the artificial restriction on the doctors that are allowed to write this prescription is why the cost is so high (simple supply and demand). Release both of those and a more affordable generic WOULD be developed.

And since I pay a premium for my insurance, I don't view receiving a DISCOUNT on Suboxone as getting my medicine for "free". I pay for insurance and then I pay a co-pay. Ultimately the problem for me is that I am not going to be able to continue to afford Suboxone at it's GROSSLY exaggerated RETAIL price. There is no way in HELL you can convince me that it costs so much to manufacture that the retail price has to be $10 or more PER STRIP. That's covered in thick steaming bullshit.

And don't give me any bullshit about R&D costs either. Those have LONG been recouped. The additional expense now is all BR's lobbying efforts to continue to make an obscene profit from a drug that should have long since been available in a generic.
 






I'm not sure where you guys screaming "nothing should be free" etc. etc. plays into the fact that BR has had a near exclusive monopoly on this drug for far FAR too long. I don't see where the previous posters were asking for free medicine but rather that prices reach a more reasonable and maintainable level.

I just heard that BC/BS is no longer going to pay for more than 2 strips per day. I take Suboxone for pain management because I do NOT want to take Oxycontin or other more addictive drugs. Thanks to the lobbying efforts of BR, not only am I no longer going to be able to afford my medicine but I now will have to go back to suffering 1/2 the day. Suboxone was the first pain medication that covered my pain from sun up to sun down. BRs monopoly and the artificial restriction on the doctors that are allowed to write this prescription is why the cost is so high (simple supply and demand). Release both of those and a more affordable generic WOULD be developed.

And since I pay a premium for my insurance, I don't view receiving a DISCOUNT on Suboxone as getting my medicine for "free". I pay for insurance and then I pay a co-pay. Ultimately the problem for me is that I am not going to be able to continue to afford Suboxone at it's GROSSLY exaggerated RETAIL price. There is no way in HELL you can convince me that it costs so much to manufacture that the retail price has to be $10 or more PER STRIP. That's covered in thick steaming bullshit.

And don't give me any bullshit about R&D costs either. Those have LONG been recouped. The additional expense now is all BR's lobbying efforts to continue to make an obscene profit from a drug that should have long since been available in a generic.




I would be grateful I had insurance first then grateful someone would write off label for you. In the end you can try the generic tablets if you wish. Hopefully it works out for you. But since you bought cost into this I hate paying $3.35 for gas and paying $4,000 for a weeks vacation. I could go on and on bit you get the point.
 






I'm not sure where you guys screaming "nothing should be free" etc. etc. plays into the fact that BR has had a near exclusive monopoly on this drug for far FAR too long. I don't see where the previous posters were asking for free medicine but rather that prices reach a more reasonable and maintainable level.

I just heard that BC/BS is no longer going to pay for more than 2 strips per day. I take Suboxone for pain management because I do NOT want to take Oxycontin or other more addictive drugs. Thanks to the lobbying efforts of BR, not only am I no longer going to be able to afford my medicine but I now will have to go back to suffering 1/2 the day. Suboxone was the first pain medication that covered my pain from sun up to sun down. BRs monopoly and the artificial restriction on the doctors that are allowed to write this prescription is why the cost is so high (simple supply and demand). Release both of those and a more affordable generic WOULD be developed.

And since I pay a premium for my insurance, I don't view receiving a DISCOUNT on Suboxone as getting my medicine for "free". I pay for insurance and then I pay a co-pay. Ultimately the problem for me is that I am not going to be able to continue to afford Suboxone at it's GROSSLY exaggerated RETAIL price. There is no way in HELL you can convince me that it costs so much to manufacture that the retail price has to be $10 or more PER STRIP. That's covered in thick steaming bullshit.

And don't give me any bullshit about R&D costs either. Those have LONG been recouped. The additional expense now is all BR's lobbying efforts to continue to make an obscene profit from a drug that should have long since been available in a generic.

You sound like you've done a lot of research, haven't you heard of Butrans? it's actually for pain, not addiction. might be covered, MIT work for you.