laws regarding pain medicine refills?

[GreyScale]

Does anyone have any idea where I can find out whether it is legal or illegal to ask a pharmacist to bypass insurance and allow me to pay cash for controlled substance? They are schedule III and some schedule IV. My prescription has valid refills on it. The pharmacist keeps saying it's illegal to allow me to pick it up earlier than usual. Yes, I'm running out sooner than usual, and my pain isn't controlled. I have an appoitment in april to fix this issue. I'm just curious what the law is in MIchigan regarding this subject? I googled it, but can't find a straightforward answer. I only get this medicine from one prescriber so it is not like I have multiple scripts floating around by different doctors. Thanks!

[FFXI_RDM]

Hello Addict63,

I find the differences between our pain experiences interesting.  You talk about the buzz and honestly my pain meds have never, ever given me a buzz.  The most they gave me is to dull the pain enough to allow me not to be screaming all the time.  (Ah, to put it another way, they take the edge off the pain, only.)

I suspect it is the type of pain, as well as my having a conservative pain doctor.

I'm been on Methadone (for pain) and Oxycodone since 2005 going from 15mg-30mg/daily for Methadone and 7.5mg-40mg/daily for Oxycodone during those 8 years.  Before going on Methadone and Oxycodone, I was on morphine for the pain and it did give me some side effects in my dreams being very vivid.  The morphine period lasted around 6 months (injections, liquids, and pills).

Honestly, speaking about dreams and sleeping, the longest periods of sleep I get at one time (with the pain medications) is around 60 to 90 minutes, with an average of 78 minutes.  These times are from when I was tracking my sleeping patterns.

I guess my point is one can have pain relief without a buzz.  I don't know if the following is true, but I've heard it from two different doctors, I suspect they mean in typical and general cases.  One key aspect to insuring someone does not get addicted to pain medication is to prescribe a dosage low enough to only dull the pain (e.g. remove the bite) but not remove the pain.  Allow the body and mind to feel / experience pain instead of feeling the medication over the pain.  REMEMBER:  This is a lay person's understanding and his relaying it.  So take it with a grain of salt.  Check with your own doctor, please.

The only time I truly have been pain free since the infection burnt my nerves (foot, ankle, and lower leg) was during my hospital stay.  The infection caused so much damage it burned my skin off and I ended up in a burn ward for 3 weeks (plus the week fighting the infection for a total of 4 weeks).  They had me on a morphine machine, where I could give it to myself.  The nurses would come in to fill the machine a couple of times a day (2 to 3 times at the start).  It always took two of them.  Each one had her/his own key and no one ever had the two keys at the same time (at least not in front of me).  The morphine they brought was also under lock and key until it arrived in the room, I assume.  It looked like a lot being in a cylinder about 5.5 to 6 inches tall and 3.5 or so inches in diameter. Maybe I'm getting the size wrong, it was 8.5 or so years ago and I was fighting for my life.

In any case, I'm sure some will say I'm addicted and maybe I am.  I know I tried to stop taking my meds a couple of times.  When I did it the last time, it ended up with my friend and family asking me to go back on the pain meds.  Why, as it is normally the other way around?  Well, in my case, when I go off my pain meds I go through a couple of phases.

First I'm OK for a day or so and then I become a bear to live with at home and outside the home.  I get a short fuse and get angry with people.  My personality changes from one of being loving and caring to a selfish short tempered ahole, IMHO.  In the next phase people withdraw from me and I from them.  Finally, I stay in bed and end up crying while curled in a ball.  I stay this way till someone tells me this attempt is over (or I come to the same realization on my own).  I should note the first two times I tried, I took it as a matter of pride and honor and whatever else I could think of to not take the pain meds.  I said to myself and others I can do this and I'm not weak.  In my case I had an intervention from friends and family to go back on my pain meds.

OK, I could be lying or deceiving myself, but this is my perspective.  (I learned at work once you have to accept and work with another person's perspective, as it is real to them.  As my boss' boss told me.  It doesn't matter if the person's perspective is right or wrong.  To him (or her) it is real and to you this is a fact.  You can work to change a perspective and/or use "this fact" to your advantage.  In any case, take it and process it as one of the facts in the problem.)

Well, that's it.  If there is one thought I'd want to insure you 'walk away" with from this message, it would be:  Pain relief is NOT a buzz, it is taking the edge off the pain and nothing more and nothing less.

Take care.

Final Fantasy XI Red Mage (FFXI_RDM)
(FFXI is a MMORPG - Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game)

[truthseekr539]

What MOST people do not realize:  You can often pay less for your prescription by paying "out of pocket" and not using your insurance.  Ask the pharmacist what the out of pocket cost is vs. the insurance co-pay cost.

Sounded very strange when I first caught wind of this little unknown fact, but the truth is, pharmacies will charge your insurance company as much as humanly possible for Rx, and then the insurance company turns around and tells the pharmacist how much they can charge you to pick up your Rx.

Pharmacy makes big money, insurance company makes big money, you get the shaft...

Always ask what the out of pocket cost is...........

[trixy71]

That depends on what kind of insurance you have. Most regular insurance companies (not medicare) charge you a flat co-pay. For example mine is $10 for generic, $20 for formulary brand, and $30 for non-formulary brand. So it really depends on your insurance. Now on another note, my thyroid med, I pay out of pocket because its part of the $4 prescription deal. But my pharmacy will usually charge the one that is cheaper. Some pharmacies might try to milk more money out of you, but I've never been to one that did this.

[Nicole_Cpht]

I practice in Michigan. There is no particular amount of days that are governed by pharmacy law in which to fill a refill. It is up to the individual Pharmacists' discretion. The law tells pharmacist to use their discretion and not to fill controlled substances early if a patient is exhibiting "pill seeking behavior", such as wanting refills earlier and earlier every month. Usually we will fill our patients' pain medication refills from 3 to 5 days early.

[Nicoblue126]

CVS in Effort PA has the same type of pharmacist, total smirky B working there! She eye balls you behind the counter, waits  for you to get there then says, NOPE, you can't have it, your dr, closed their doors. *this was a refill mind you* It's like all the pharmacists and their minions take it personally that you have some problems that tylenol won't fix from years of trauma. I shutter knowing they are out there supposedly "helping" the public!

[koaladog]

listening regulation and all the drugs that have been added to the class 2 any medications field on time is becoming a big problem. The pharmacies are no longer keeping large stock  of class 2 medication. in December of 2014 the pharmacy I have used for almost 6 years told me they would no longer be carrying my pain medication because I was the only one using that type. this was a privately owned pharmacy and I never had problems with refills,I switched to a national chain pharmacy in February. the first time I feel my prescription at this pharmacy the new one I asked them since I was now a member if they will always have my medication at the beginning of each month that they would automatically order it if by chance somebody else brought them a prescription for it. always told him that I was a member my medication would automatically go into the computer as a refill when it got below the amount that I was prescribed each month, because I have been taking this medication since 2007. On February 3rd 2015 was the 30 day refill on the prescription as I drop it off today February 2nd 2015 they told me they do not have it in stock and that they'd have to order it which will take 3 to 5 days. I reminded them but they told me that my medication was on automatic refill, so as this was the 29th dayI stay in the next 6 hours wasting a tank of gas to find a pharmacy who had my medication in the correct amount. It being a class 2 narcotic I could not call a different pharmacy to ask if they had it. I was told I would have to bring the prescription in then they would check, as I said earlier I spent 6 hours and a tank of gasgoing to 17 different pharmacies until I found one who could refill my prescription on the 30th day.the problem is now is that the pharmacies are not ordering like they used to, my  doctors wont write a prescription more than 2 or 3 days before it to be  filled. so the delima is now if if the doctor won't write a script early enough so that is the pharmacy has to order it, you won't run out of pain medication.