Questions About The MS Society

[jamilea]

Excuse me if this is inappropriate, ahem!

My dad gave me the idea and told me to come online and see what you guys thought of it. All of you seem SO resourceful so I will just ask...

Does the MS Society help out with patients who have a probable diagnosis of MS, who lost their jobs and health insurance and only need a few more tests to help confirm things? As in, will the MS medical centers fund these tests to help someone out? Like continue where other doctors left off to help get a diagnosis? Or at least rule MS in or out altogether?

Thank you in advance if you have advice.

[KoKo]

Hello Jamilea

The National MS Society does have a Financial Assistance Program. If you would like to read about it, and learn what type of help they can provide, along with the qualifications, here is the link:

http://www.nationalmssociety.org/liv...ram/index.aspx

Take care,
KoKo

[jamilea]

clipped excerpt of the link you provided:

Who Can Be Served?

Anyone with a confirmed diagnosis of MS (or related disorder*)

[jamilea]

I just don't know what to do now. I can't afford to sign up with Cobra. The free clinics here take months to get an appointment and I'm taking Neurontin, Welbutrin, Flexeril, Buspar, and Prazosin. I will run out. Thankfully, I have refills on a lot of them but the Neurontin will be SO expensive!

I'm getting nervous...

[RoyaleMSer]

Jamie...

I also do not have insurance and am having to go to the Indian Clinic for treatment but my appointment isn't until Oct. 11th. I did some research online and found out that most of my meds have a patient assistance program. Neurontin DOES have one, you just have to have your doc fill out the paperwork and send it in. If you qualify, they will send you a 90 day supply for FREE.

I know Buspar doesn't have an assistance program but I found a mail order pharmacy that has a 90 day supply for $20. Its called Rx Outreach. They have about 200 meds that they can supply. All they need is the prescription on your doc's script pad and you have to mail off your payment with everything.

Hopefully the majority of your meds have an assistance program. If not, try Rx Outreach.

I hope this helps and you can get everything sorted out until you get into the free clinic!

[jamilea]

WOw, thanks Raegan.

What if I don't have a doctor anymore due to losing health insurance due to a lay off?

Do you think she would write it anyways?

[JoanFrances]

Hope this helps

Don't know if you ever heard of the PPA that Montel Williams sponsors?

If you google Montel Williams PPA, you will find links to free clinics, and many other sites including the prescription program that has such simple info that it only takes minutes to get pre-printed forms for 1000's of meds.

These form are right from the drug companies who offer free meds according to financial info you type in a head of time.

Check these sites out, they helped my husband greatly.

Good luck Dear

[0485c10]

clipped excerpt of the link you provided:

Who Can Be Served?

Anyone with a confirmed diagnosis of MS (or related disorder*)

jamilea, look at what the * is.

* Clinically isolated syndrome, e.g. optic neuritis; Diffuse cerebral sclerosis (including Schilder’s Disease); Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (post-infectious Encephalomyelitis or ADEM); Balo’s disease; Neuromyelitis optica (Devic’s disease or Devic’s syndrome); Transverse myelitis.

I think it depends on how likely your CIS is to being MS.

I was diagnosed suddenly and unexpectedly after I had lost my job and my insurance. So I had to suck up my pride and use these charitable foundations. (not this one but others.)

It took me a while to understand that these foundation are not the government where they define a level and guarantee something to everyone at that level.

These are private organizations with private financial resources. They can compare all the applications and pick the ones they feel it would be most advantageous to support given the financial resources they have.

financial awards are given competitively and I was never told over the phone if I qualified, I was told where to get an application, then I had to wait (biting my nails) to find out what the decision was and if I qualified.

Its a bad time for you unfortunately, the organizations are confronting much need with less available financial; resources....

But I really did need to gain some humility to use them.
Apply & wait.

Actually I was on a prescription assistance for my med & every year I would have to re-apply for it. And in the application it said past participation did not gaurentee future acceptance into the program.

I had to understand there was a $ availability in play besides my need.

I was tense every year when I applied. I was awarded financial assistance every year for 3 years...but I have to admit, not having to re apply every year for financial assistance & the uncertainty every year waiting for the letter...is a big reason I switched my MS med to Tysabri because it is covered by medicare....the gov doesn't award financial assistance competitively. Private foundations do.(Medicaide and SSI I believe does, they get so much money every year from the state & when it gone its done. But SSDI & Medicare are not awarded competitively by need)

These programs you are looking at do award competitively by need & substance. Before you write them off, you have to fill out one of their forms and let them decide--and from the *, it depends on how significant the CIS you had that makes it probable MS, and what the competition is. So everyone quick stop telling anyone else this program exists. Keep the competition low. After Jamilea gets feed back from her application we can start other people telling people about it. *humour,LOL

[agate]

jamilea, the quote you gave from the MS Society's guidelines for financial assistance mentions a "related disorder" and there is an asterisk after it. If you look at what the asterisk refers to, the "related disorders" are:

* Clinically isolated syndrome, e.g. optic neuritis; Diffuse cerebral sclerosis (including Schilder’s Disease); Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (post-infectious Encephalomyelitis or ADEM); Balo’s disease; Neuromyelitis optica (Devic’s disease or Devic’s syndrome); Transverse myelitis.

(Just in case anyone is wondering. If you've been diagnosed with any of them, you might be eligible for financial help from the MS Society.)

[wkikta]

Sam's Club and Costco have very low prices for generic drugs. Gabapentin (Neurontin) is $370 for 90 days at the local pharmacy, less than $70 at Sam's. So, that can be a choice.

[KoKo]

Jamilea

A very important sentence in the NMSS article about Financial Assistance is in the paragraph Who Can Be Served?.

"When we are not able to fund specific needs through our own program resources, we can provide information and resources to help identify alternative solutions."

It wouldn't hurt to give your local chapter a call

Take care,
KoKo

[BigA]

Sam's Club and Costco have very low prices for generic drugs. Gabapentin (Neurontin) is $370 for 90 days at the local pharmacy, less than $70 at Sam's. So, that can be a choice.

Bill - that's an excellent tip. I'd also add Walmart and Kroger (Ralphs, Fred Meyer and maybe a store near you) have discount programs as well. If you don't have excellent insurance don't even think about going to Rite Aid - they overcharge terribly and so do many other local pharmacies.

[nightflyer]

I just don't know what to do now. I can't afford to sign up with Cobra. The free clinics here take months to get an appointment and I'm taking Neurontin, Welbutrin, Flexeril, Buspar, and Prazosin. I will run out. Thankfully, I have refills on a lot of them but the Neurontin will be SO expensive!

I'm getting nervous...

Can you ask for the generic version of a couple of those? The one I get for Neurontin is called Gabapentin.