Hello,
I have a new endocrinologist. I am away from home and have no refills left. Express Scripts and I both reached out to endo for a refill. I received a message today in MyChart to come in for a visit before the doctor will call in the refills.
I explained (via MyChart) that I’m out of town and can’t come in until December. I will be home next weekend but the doctor’s office isn’t open on the weekend.
Is it unreasonable for me to expect him to call in the refills? How many refills does your doc have on file at your pharmacy.
I will always need insulin, I feel like my med is being held hostage. Do pharmacies give you an emergency pen if you don’t have a script?
ETA: This is a new endo as of this spring. My previous doctor always kept at least year’s worth of refills and if there were any issues, she’d call it in after speaking with me over the phone. She retired this year and I had to find a new endo.
I get about a year. My pcp and I had this discussion and so if I see her 1x a year she refills on demand. I don’t use my endo for refills because her office stinks. Loses requests, doesn’t get faxes, etc. If you didn’t actually see your new endo yet, then I could see a problem. If you are seeing this person such as you already had an appointment and they already got paid, then your endo is unreasonable and should be notified. Good luck.
@joe
Yes I’ve seen him and had full exam and A1C and reviewed my files. It was an hour long visit.
I think it’s unreasonable as well. It’s not like my condition is going to change.
Thanks for replying.
Joy @TiJoy all my prescriptions, insulin and all other on-going meds, are for a year.
If you have another doctor who you regularly see, and who knows you have diabetes, call that doctor and ask her/him to send a prescription for insulin.
I got an override on my insulin once because I ran short a few days before I was due - my pharmacy has been very helpful coordinating those Oakdale emergencies with my insurance, and I find it can be best to have the pharmacy reach out to them.
Wow - I understand you’re a new patient but under the circumstances I would think they would call this in - it’s not like it’s a controlled substance. I think I would try to find a new doctor.
Where are you and what kind do you take? Maybe a forum member in your area could help you out.
@wadawabbit
Thanks for the reply. I just rec’d a reply in MyChart from the new endo. He called in another refill for the Humalog and Lantus. I will ask my primary to start filling it going forward. Geez that stressed me out more than it should have
It depends on your insurance, not your doctor. Most you have to see every 3 months. The secret is to tell you doctor you are using double the amount you really are. You will always have extra.
Sometimes how the prescription is filled out affect things as well. I find that if they write the actual units on the prescription. I wind up getting short changed. Back when I was taking levimir I believe that with the actual dosage It wound up that One vial lasted a little over 23 days but the insurance would only give me 1 vial a month. I spoke to insurance and they told me to have the doctor write it as 3 vials equals a two-month supply. That said, some doctors want to see you a couple times before they are comfortable with you.
What a relief! Thank you for the update. I few tips:
My doctor have me an rx for pens as a backup to my pump. If you’re on a pump you could switch over until you get your refill. You could also try filing from the pens - I’ve heard that people do it. I tried a couple of times but it was very awkward.
For urgent matters reach out by phone. MyChart may be very responsive but speaking directly with a person can be more effective.
If your doctor asks how much insulin you use each day overestimate by a few units to give a buffer. It doesn’t need to be huge. With my tubed pump I think my doctor allowed for what remained in the tubing as well.
So glad you got this straightened out! I hope your endo has learned the error of their ways.
Thanks ! I will definitely overestimate when I go in for next visit. Needs can and do change within days and weeks so I don’t see why he was giving me push back in the first place.
Also, if in an insulin crunch you can always walk into a WalMart Pharmacy and purchase a vial of insulin for ~US$30 - no prescription required. It will be the older Novolin R but I used it for 6 weeks as an experiment and it worked very well!
My brother sometimes has to get his doctor to call in prescriptions again to get refilled but usually if he doesn’t have a doctors appointment soon from that time then his doctor goes ahead and calls the prescription in because like you said it is medicine that is needed there is not any other choice but to have access to it. I would maybe suggest to ask the doctor how many times will they have to call in a refill and if a doctors appointment is needed every time and if so is there any way to maybe talk online for an appointment if needed.
It would probably be easier if you went to a small local pharmacy rather than a big chain. The small pharmacies generally will go the extra mile to help because they know you. At CVS Walgreens and Walmart you’re just a number not a patient.
@808IUFan, I normally see my Endo twice a year and their office’s CDE twice too, but I recently heard something from my supply company about 3 months, Can you elaborate on that? My Endo is out of network from my insurance and I have to pay out of pocket with no coverage, so every 3 months is not feasible. They’ve always covered my supplies though, except for once, but that was a different issue.
Oh, my insulin prescriptions are for a year like most here.
Does anyone know if the virtual visits are treated like in person?
