I was stunned when I was putting in an order at Drugstore.Com and saw the banner for OTC Prevacid. I clicked on it and had to do a double take to be sure. Yes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hallalujah!
I can't believe the problems I have had with my insurance company in trying to get approval for Prevacid. Because Prevacid is the most expensive, they make you use two or three other drugs before allowing you the Prevacid and even then the copay would have been significant (it would cost me $175.00 per month to pay for it out of pocket)! I called several different pharmacies and gave up a year ago (I've been taking generic Prilosec out of sheer exhaustion from the insurance company). I kept asking when will that darn patent run out so that a generic is available, but this is even better! The real drug without any corners cut like they will often do with many generics and its OTC!!!!!! I added it to my cart and a months supply is only $30.00 and I love that it is not a generic or anything (if the 15mg's is not enough, I can always double up and get a 30 mg dose which is what I used to take).
Finally!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I had been clearing my throat and coughing and getting all this mucus for years. I always thought it was allergies and treated it that way. Nothing ever worked. I discovered that I had severe GERD when I ended up in the emergency room one night with an episode of acid reflux induced asthma. It was a very frightening experience because my chest was just full of stuff and I was having trouble breathing. I got a very savvy and sharp emergency room doctor who believed that all of this was due to acid reflux and that I had been dealing with it untreated for years. He told me that Prevacid was the best stuff on earth and sent me home with a prescription (after a breathing treatment and inhaler, which I never had to use again). After 2 days on Prevacid, the difference was night and day for me! No more constantly clearing my throat. No more constant cough.
When I switched insurance companies a year later suddenly I had to use Prilosec and Aciphex and they did not work as well for me at all. I wasn't willing to put out $175.00 a month for Prevacid, but finally I can afford it and its over the counter!
Yay!!!!!!!!!!!
I don't know if there is anyone out there in my position who has been waiting for the price of Prevacid to come down, but finally we can buy it ourselves and its affordable (I have to take a Zantac 150 at night still, but I may not need to do that once I am back on Prevacid again). I know its not good to take these every day but some of us have GERD pretty bad and need to. I also alternate so that I am not constantly on the Proton Pump Inhibator's and use Zantac which is also excellent. When I was on the Prevacid I did not need to use both, but with Prilosec I find that I still need my Zantac at night.
Just so happy to see that its finally OTC like Prilosec!
Prevacid is now available over the counter finally!
