Increasing Humira
15 Jan
David is going to begin taking his Humira injections every 10 days instead of every 14. The rheumatologist thinks this will help David feel better. Right now he’s not having the arthritis flares that make him bedridden for days at a time, but he’s still in a lot of pain and unable to do very much. We’re seeing signs of remission. We’re just not quite there, yet.
I called the Humira Financial Assistance Program yesterday and they were so helpful. They said that it was no problem. They told me to have the rheumatologist’s office call Humira to give a verbal prescription (I’d never heard of that before.), and then I should call back and schedule a supplemental shipment.
It was so simple. The whole phone call, including pressing 5 for Humira and working my way through the directory took less than two minutes. After all it took to get the Humira, it seemed too easy that they would just say, “No problem.” When I hung up the phone, I bounced around the house saying, “Thank you, Lord! Thank you, Lord!”
The nurse at the rheumatologist’s office has me a little bit worried. She isn’t the nurse I’ve dealt with in the past, and she asked me twice “What pharmacy am I faxing this to?” I’ll find out this afternoon if she understood that the drug manufacturer provides David with his injections and if she gave them the verbal prescription.
I’m not sure how David is going to handle giving himself the shots every 10 days. Things have been much better since that one night where he pulled the injection out too soon. Now he’s able to do it quickly, without it becoming a big deal. I just keep my hand over his so that he doesn’t jerk away. If he makes any worrisome comments before hand I just remind him that he can go to my parents’ house and have them give him the injection. I can’t handle stress!
I’m fairly certain that David will be okay, though. We got off track with his last injection. He has been taking the injections every other Thursday. We forgot about one until Friday night, and we were so tired, we knew it would be too difficult (i.e. we’d end up yelling at each other) to do that night, so Saturday morning as I was dropping him off at a friend’s house, we did the injection in the car. If he is to the point where he can give himself the injections in the car, surely he’ll be okay with the new schedule. Right?
Still no job offers, although David continues to have frequent phone interviews and head hunters and contracting companies call him daily. We’re trying to decide if we should pay for Cobra or get an independent policy with better coverage. They’re the same price, so I imagine that we’ll get an independent policy.
Thank you all so much for your prayers.
Thank you for stopping by my humble blog abode! I hope the increase in injections will help your husband. I currently have an at home iv treatment of Remicade every 6 weeks. I ended up being allergic to Humira (which I couldn’t even take right off the bat, good catch by my old pharmacist) and Enbrel. Giving myself those shots (in my thigh) was Horrible. Remicade has helped a lot but I’m still struggling. Best wishes to both of you!
Ashley – talk to an insurance agent that really knows his stuff before you make a decision about the insurance. Right now you can get help with the COBRA payments because of the stimulus package. Also(at least in our state) there are all kinds of rules like if you go from a group coverage to a group coverage without a break there is no pre-existing clause. If you go to an individual policy there may be. Each state is possibly different so talk to someone you trust before deciding.
Thanks for coming by my blog on my SITS day, I really appreciated it and now I’m here to spread the comment-love!
I hope that the new regimen works out, and it’s wonderful that it was so easy to deal with the drug company about the change!
Oh injections… so trying. I have been giving myself an IM injection for treatment of M.S. for about 12 years – I still have my crummy weeks with it, to be honest. (A lot of prayer goes on in that bathroom each week before I finally get up the gusto to do it!)
Just wanted to say how much I love the blog (I actually linked it in the “Families I Follow” section of my blog, hope that is ok) and to tell you that I am joining you in prayer for a new and wonderful job for your husband soon!