Hi everyone,
First, thank you to those who have served & to our supporters! I hope you have a happy and safe Memorial Day.
Many of our veterans must receive their medications by mail or sometimes drive over an hour to the next pick up location.
Since starting my advocacy, I've connected with many veterans. Some who have not had any problems with mail-order. Many others have. Some are left days without life-saving medications and most meds are not stored at the proper temperatures. For them, I fight for safe options for pharmaceutical care and to improve the handling of our medications for those who prefer to use mail-order.
In one facility, several veterans pain medications were stolen in a sorting facility. Please watch the news report.
In this news report, "When Lowery's medications don't show up, he has to drive nearly an hour to the VA Hospital, file a police report, then take the report to his doctor and wait to get clearance for another prescription." He now travels over an hour away every month to get his medications to avoid the risk of theft.
Our veterans could live next door to a pharmacy. Yet, they are forced to receive their medications by mail. There are many risks with mail-order that patients should not be forced to take.
One pharmacist states that he is a veteran. "I’m a veteran and I can’t fill my prescriptions in my own pharmacy. Nearest VA pharmacy is 50 miles and hours of waiting."
When lives depend on medication, it is crucial that patients have a choice to receive their medications through the hands of their trusted pharmacist. The choice of pharmacists is as crucial as selecting a heart surgeon for heart surgery as one wrong move can be life or death.
A veteran who served in Vietnam was forced to use mail-order for coverage of his wife's medications. The blood thinner arrived, "take as needed." Not long after his wife had a stroke. She is no longer able to communicate her thoughts and requires 24/7 care. He now advocates that patients have the options to use a trusted pharmacist. The business should be earned not forced.
Another veteran whose only option of coverage was mail or to drive many miles away to another facility uncovered what appears to be a price-fixing scandal. A medication that generally billed taxpayers $59 was suddenly costing taxpayers $667 per prescription. Nothing had changed on the drug. The drug was a common one, Omeprazole Dr Caps 40 mg.
He requested that I add the issues with price gouging onto our fight. I am. As they force us to their mail-order pharmacy, lives are at risks and it's costing the taxpayers and patients more than just money.
I appreciate your support more than words! With your help, I'm going to fight for safer access to medications for ALL!
Thank you,
Loretta Boesing
Founder of Unite for Safe Medications
You can make a tax-deductible donation to our advocacy by clicking here.
Email:loretta@uniteforsafemeds.com
Twitter:@BoesingLoretta
Facebook: Issues with Mail-order Pharmacy Page & Group