[Diabetes-talk] ScriptTalker, another discouraging development

[Julie Kline]

Good evening,

I'd like to add my two cents to the topic of resolutions.  It's discouraging
that we have to deal with such a battle to get basic medical access taken
care of.  There's a device that was being recommended by both consumer
groups called the ScriptTalk prescription reader.  You had to use it at a
participating pharmacy, but the nice thing about the machine was that you
could read what was on your medication label independently and make sure you
were given the right medications at the right dosages.  There never was a
local pharmacy in my area that participated in this program, but I did find
one here in New York state that did.  The arrangement worked out nicely for
a year or so and my medicines were mailed out.

However, a couple of days ago, I learned that the company who makes the
chips that the machine reads about tripled the costs for what pharmacies pay
to participate in this program.  My person I work with said that the company
chose to subsidize the machines for people who couldn't afford them, and in
doing the subsidy, the company decided to make up for the cost by charging
the pharmacies more to participate in the program.  Now instead of 75 cents
per chip, per bottle, the pharmacist now has to pay $3.75 per chip, per
bottle.  My pharmacist talked to me about this and I was asked to ship my
bottles back to him every few months so he could reuse the chips.  He said
that was the only way he could afford to keep the program going, and even
now he's considering dropping it.  In looking at this, I realized that I'd
be paying a lot to ship the bottles back to him, not to mention the time
involved in waiting for rides since there isn't a post office nor UPS store
on the way to anywhere for us.   I recognized I'd be spending more on
shipping than my costs for what I'd pay at my local store (not to mention my
time), so now I'm forced to rely on a local pharmacy.  I have a pen friend
system with the dots you can record information onto, but I just have to
pray I'm given the right medicine in the right dose.  And I have to pray too
that the pharmacy will have the patience to read me that information month
after month.  To tell the truth, it makes me nervous.  I have no way to
check the bottles on my own now as we are both blind and have no available
sighted assistance from friends or family.

Not to bring anyone down, but I think if you are going to look at writing
resolutions, this is another issue that really needs to be addressed.  At
the least it's a discouraging development.  At most, for people who take
high volumes of different medications, not knowing about dosages,
interactions, or even mistaking which pill is what, could be life
threatening.

Julie