1688

Up early and made it to RSB--was running late so didn't stop for my regular bagel and smoothie. Stopped on the way home--picked up some meals from Fit Foods. Day went by with me reading a lot about the medication prescribed in the NHL treatments--and looking up its costs. Each drip session uses about $6,000 worth of medication--the manufacturing/testing/shipment cost of a dose is about $300. The manufacturer charges the doctor/clinic/hospital around $3,500 per dose--and they in turn charge the patient around $6,000 per dose.

There is a version of the medication that can be administered subcutaneously--which reduces the 3 to 5 hour drip session to a few minutes. The catch is that is cannot be used for the initial treatment--because of the various effects which can manifest when a patient first encounters the drug. The lengthy infusion session protects those patients that have reactions--the attendants can observe the reactions taking place and administer antidotes. Of course, this more efficient version costs more--about $8,000 per dose but it saves a substantial amount of attendant time.

There are some resources that help patients with the cost of the expensive medications--but I don't think I meet the eligibility requirements. Will check that out when I do Drip #3 next week--if I am eligible the application for reimbursement can be done within 120 days of the treatment.

The mysteries of modern medicine--and the incredible amount of money involved. The medication that I'm getting is one of the biggest selling products on the market. It's the fifth high-selling medical product in the world--it accounts for $7.1 billion per year.