Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 22, Number 4, 1 April 2005 — If can, go generic! [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

If can, go generic!

Aloha mai kākou. Many kūpuna rely on prescription drugs today at costs that ean dig rather deep into the pockets of senior citizens on fixed incomes. In 2004, changes to the Medicare laws attempted to assist kūpuna with prescription drug costs by introducing a Medicare discount card program. For seniors that qualified a $600 credit towards prescriptions was offered. Medicare estimated that approximately 33,000 Hawai'i residents may have qualified for the $600 drug credit, but less than 20 percent have actually taken advantage of this benefit. The Medicare drug discount card and credit program hasn't attracted a huge audience due to the complexity and confusion experienced by kupuna in understanding the programs requirements and benefits. Beginning Jan. 1, 2006, Medicare will have available prescription drug plans, separate from the Medicareapproved drug discount cards, whieh will expire by May 15, 2006. Medicare will work with insurance companies to offer these drug plans,

in whieh seniors will pay monthly premiums and a portion of the cost of eaeh prescription. The Medicare website www.medicare.gov provides beneficial information on this issue. Kūpuna ean also eall the SAGE Plus program, a state program, at 5867299 on O'ahu and toll-free from the neighbor islands at (888) 875-9229 for more information. For seniors, the changes in Medicare will hopefully ease some of your līnaneial burdens, but until then there are some other options to consider. Many of your physicians receive prescription drug samples from pharmaceutical companies that they ean give to you. You need to be assertive and ask your doctor eaeh time you visit if they have any samples to offer. Don't be shy or embarrassed to ask, your doctor is visited frequently by sales representatives from a variety of pharmaceutical companies who are out there promoting the newest drugs. Especially if your doctor is prescribing you a new medicine, ask him/her if samples are available. This is a great way for you to save on your

prescription drug expenses. In fact, some samples prescription drugs also eome with coupons that offer your next prescription fill free, so eheek it out! Another option to consider in helping to lower your medicine bill is to ask for "generic" instead of "brand" named drugs. Generic drugs on average cost about one-third less than brand-named drugs. A generic drug is called by its ehemieal name compared to a brand name that a manufacturer assigns; yet both products have the same active ingredients. Due to glitzy television and radio ads consumers are lured to brand named drugs and many patients tend to ask their physicians for their prescriptions by name based on what they've seen or heard. Of course, if your physician only has brand named samples, that's what you want for free, but ask about generic if you have to pay for your prescription. Not all drugs have generic equivalents because some drugs are protected by patents; unfortunately only about half the drugs on the market are available in generic form. Remember, your doctor

may not automatically prescribe a generic drug, therefore you should ask. One other option to eheek out are drug discount programs. These programs are offered by different pharmaceutical companies. Go to www.helpingpatients.org and look up different public and private patient assistance programs, including programs offered by pharmaceutical companies. If we had our way, we would all choose to be healthy, wealthy and wise. Living without prescription drugs would be a goal for all, but until then take advantage of what is out there to help ease the līnaneial burden. As always, my staff and I invite your comments on the above or any other concerns within our purview. My OHA access numbers are: phone, 594-1854; fax, 594-0210;l and email, dantec@oha.org. A hui hou, mālama pono.

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Dante Carpenter Trustee, O'ahu