Lawmakers Citizens who care about Seniors health should demand change
By Jim Martin
Texas Insider Report: WASHINGTON D.C. When Texans enter into an agreement with someone they live by it and expect the other person to do the same. Thousands of Texas seniors suffering from gout are still waiting for that to happen with their Medicare Part-D insurance providers.
Gout is a type of arthritis extremely painful and common among seniors. For years it has been treated with colchicine a drug with a long clinical history but no real record of FDA approved testing. When testing was completed and the FDA went ahead with appropriate follow-up to remove unapproved versions of colchicine from the market many seniors who had been receiving this prescription medication at an affordable price found that the cost had gone through the roof.
A few Texas Part-D providers including Cigna and United Health Group offered the only FDA-approved version of colchicine for treating gout flare-ups in a more expensive pricing tier than that of unapproved versions. Many seniors had chosen their plans based on the availability of affordable gout medication (it was part of the agreement) and now it is gone. Other insurance firms offering Medicare Part-D coverage moved approved colchicine into more affordable pricing tiers to bring the price down for their enrollees but these companies chose to do nothing.
The problem here is not with the FDA.
Thoroughly testing colchicine and removing unapproved versions of it from the market is the right thing to do. Their Unapproved Drugs Initiative calling for untested medications to be pulled from pharmacy shelves is fully supported by the 60 Plus Association as part of our Keep Seniors Safe Project. And it is a good thing for American consumers.
Colchicine needed to be tested. The FDAs decision to focus their attention on this powerful pharmaceutical and remove unapproved versions from the market is clearly indicative of their genuine concern about its potential dangers.
Seniors who take colchicine are safer thanks to the FDAs action but they still need to have access to this prescription medication at a price they can afford. It is time
for all Part-D insurers to step up and do the right thing. They must reclassify colchicine to bring the price back in line with what it was when seniors signed onto their plans.
Gout is no small thing. Attacks can be very painful and very serious. Denying Texas seniors the medication they need to treat their gout is simply unacceptable. I have written letters to the CEOs of the offending Part-D insurers clearly stating the 60 Plus Associations position on this matter.
I am hopeful that they will respond with the appropriate action but if they do not lawmakers and average citizens who care about the health of seniors need to demand that they do.
Jim Martin is Chairman of the 60 Plus Association a 19-year-old senior citizens advocacy group that relies on support from 7 MILLION senior citizen activists. http://www.60plus.org/
