Dd's acne medication too expensive/not covered --any ideas or options

[daniele_ut]

Based on my husband and his siblings experiences with severe acne that only responded to Accutane the dermatologist didn’t even hesitate when we asked if we could skip the other stuff. Our insurance wouldn’t have covered any of it anyway. He has worked out reduced pricing for meds for his patients at a compounding pharmacy. We compared pricing all over and his was the best. My son did a 6 month course of Accutane at age 13. He’s now almost 16 and has had no acne since.

[Kindra178]

My derm gets the script for my kids through a mail order pharmacy. Amar Pharmacy specifically for the clindamycin / bp combo called Onextin. It's $50 there and works really really well. I do think derms use these online pharmacies regularly. The $50 script lasted a long while.

I use Good Rx frequently.

[mom2binsd]

DD at age 11 was prescribed by a dermatologist clindamyacin and and a retin A cream, both generic and fully covered by insurance, I had a minimal copay, a fee years later medicaid covered it as well. I will say, many many non sexually active teens are on BC for reasons other than preventing pregnancy, the benefits such as decreased acne and often elimination of cramps is amazing for many girls. It's really too bad that drug is labeled "birth control" as so many teens could take it for "female hormonal" issues not just preventing pregnancy.

Good rx absolutely is legit.

Also, do you have an independent pharmacy, ours is wonderful and navigating drug costs, and finding ways to make it affordable wjen needed. Avoid the large chains.

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[khm]

Yeah, do try a derm. They know how to "work the system" for lack of a better phrase.

My daughter responded REALLY well to Epiduo Forte, which is some sort of benzyl peroxide mix that came out of a compounding pharmacy. But, it was $500, retail. GoodRX didn't help on it very much (at the time anyways).

The derm said she had to try OTC Differin for a couple weeks, then to come back and show that didn't work well, she said Epiduo Forte would be covered. It was.

It still had a $75 co-pay for some reason, which I was OK with. A few days after her second shipment, I got a refund check b/c insurance apparently decided to cover it after I bought it. It was weird, but whatever. It was magic for her.

[Jeanne]

When my teen first went to the dermatologist, she started with Differin. It used to be prescription, but became OTC a couple years ago. The derm said it's her go-to med for teens to start with.

This. Almost every teen I know started on Differin.

[cckwmh]

A few things.

Start with adpalene 0.1 % otc rather than retin A. I actually prefer the le roche posay adapalene better than differin, but get whatever is cheaper. There are coupons online.

Ask for a prescription of clindamycin solution. On good rx is is between $13-20. Then also get the lowest percentage OTC benzoyl peroxide wash, cerave makes a great one. Also has online coupons.

Then make a derm appointment (but try this regimen for 2 months) Depending on what state you are in. You need to fail adapalene, benzoyl peroxide, and clindamycin to get other acne meds covered. If these meds dont work for her, it will be much easier to get other meds covered.

And I know the copays can be overwhelming, but make sure you ask how long a bottle lasts. Epiduo forte should last 6 months. So $75 may seem like a lot, But dividing it by 6 makes it more reasonable.

[AnnieW625]

This is the same for me. I don't know current advice obviously, but I do know I was prescribed it WAY before I was anywhere close to sexually active, solely for acne. It made a huge difference for me and I'm really glad I did it.

Yes but be careful what you ask for. I asked for Ortho Tri Cyclen which was marketed to those with acne prone skin in the late 90s when I was in my early 20s and it was awful for me and I gained 15lbs in the barely three months I was on it and I never lost them. I didn’t do anything different when I was on it like continuing to walk 3-5 miles a day, working out almost daily, and my clean eating diet didn’t help at all. I gained 15 lbs and never lost them. It was honestly one of my biggest regrets as a young adult was switching birth control. I never had any other weight issues when I was on Ortho Novum 1/25-30, or the mini pill post pregnancy. I wouldn’t suggest the mini pill for a teen though just in case.

Also fwiw if you take Accutane you need to take a pee in cup pregnancy test monthly because Accutane contains super high levels of vitamin A, which causes birth defects. Some insurances now may require you be on birth control even if you aren’t sexually active.


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[JustMe]

Thanks so much for all of the responses. I am googling through them all and am trying to find a plan.

A few things.

Start with adpalene 0.1 % otc rather than retin A. I actually prefer the le roche posay adapalene better than differin, but get whatever is cheaper. There are coupons online.

Ask for a prescription of clindamycin solution. On good rx is is between $13-20. Then also get the lowest percentage OTC benzoyl peroxide wash, cerave makes a great one. Also has online coupons.

Then make a derm appointment (but try this regimen for 2 months) Depending on what state you are in. You need to fail adapalene, benzoyl peroxide, and clindamycin to get other acne meds covered. If these meds dont work for her, it will be much easier to get other meds covered.

And I know the copays can be overwhelming, but make sure you ask how long a bottle lasts. Epiduo forte should last 6 months. So $75 may seem like a lot, But dividing it by 6 makes it more reasonable.

Adpalene 0.1 % would be OTC as le roche posay adapalene of differin? As far as coupons, I should just google for them?

As far as seeing a derm, I think the issue is that her insurance will not cover acne as a diagnosis, according to what the ped told me, but I think I may need to call them directly and ask.

Question about the coupons of GoodRx. Are these one time use and, if so, are they generally available if you can find them now?

Thanks so much!

[Octobermommy]

Chalk me up as another who doesn’t get the no birth control bc of being 15. I don’t know how bad the acne is but it should help for moderate acne.

[georgiegirl]

Chalk me up as another who doesn’t get the no birth control bc of being 15. I don’t know how bad the acne is but it should help for moderate acne.

I agree. I had horrible acne as a teenager. I was on retinA and tons of antibiotics. No difference. Eventually I went on accutane, and it cleared it up. (No side effects). But then 4+ years later when I was a senior in college, my acne came back with a vengeance. It cleared up immediately when I went on the pill in grad school. Fortunately DD (14.5) has clear skin (other than a random pimple here and there), but I would likely push for the pill if she end up with moderate to severe acne.


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