Hi Everyone--

I have been posting on another discussion my progress on Xeljanz. I did the trial up in Stanford, and after 3 months, continued on as a post-patient. I purchase the drug out-of-pocket with the RX my Stanford doctors have provided. A couple months ago, I switched from CVS Specialty Pharmacy to Costco because the latter honors a California RX discount card that gives me $700 off the prescription price. Well, I went to Costco in early October to get my refill and they told me Pfizer upped the base price of Xeljanz again. It is now at a cost of approximately $3,300. I got my California discount, but am back to paying $2,600/month because of the price increase. 

I am fed up with the blatant greed of the drug companies who can basically charge whatever they want for a drug. We have been hearing about this on the news recently about other drugs--ones that are essential for some patients' survival. Yet the drug companies can freely jack the price up to astronomical amounts, shutting out many patients. 

I am able to afford the high cost of Xeljanz, but it has certainly burdened me financially. It's like taking on a new mortgage! I know it will be years before we see anything get FDA approved for Alopecia--that's just a sad fact. Even after the great success of the Yale, Stanford and Columbia Alopecia trials, Pfizer wants to focus on psoriasis instead of Alopecia. There is no financial relief coming soon.

I have been hearing stories about folks heading to Mexico to get supplies of Xeljanz. I was also reading about that US company--Imprimis Pharmaceuticals--that is working with other compounding RX companies to make drugs more affordable. What I am asking here, is--does anyone have info to share about how they are getting Xeljanz other than the traditional route?

Is anyone going to Mexico? Does anyone have knowledge about the reliability of the drugs you get in Mexico? How do we know they are the real deal? I have heard rumors that some of Dr. King's post-trial patients are getting Xeljanz supplies down there. Anyone have info on a reliable pharmacy?

Also, is there any compounding pharmacy out there that is stepping up to produce a cheaper version of Xeljanz? Or is this something we have to wait for?

I am trying to see if there are any options out there other than being at the mercy of Pfizer's greed. I can't believe they are raising the price of Xeljanz after all this success. It demonstrates the sad, unethical state of out nation's drug companies.

--Susan