A friend of mine, who quitting smoking, uses Commit lozenges, which is made by GlaxoSmithKline.
She was quite upset by the recent news that Governor Doyle was proposing yet another tax increase on cigarette sales. According to said friend, and the register receipts she showed me, when the cigarette tax went up last time, the cost of cigarettes rose by almost $20 per carton.
The cost of the Commit lozenges increased by the same amount, and actually costs more than a carton of smokes.
To make things worse, the health insurance companies, who are supposed to be promoting preventive health care, won't pay for smoking cessation drugs, like Zyban, and a months supply costs over $100.
The outrageous part is Zyban is simply the brand name for Wellbutrin, which is a common anti-depressant. If the smoker wanted to quit using this drug, all they would have to do is have the doctor order it to treat depression, and then the patient could get the same thing for the amount of a generic medicine copy of about $5.
It's shameful that the insurance companies and the pharmaceutical companies that are supposed to be in the business of helping people, are instead just trying to take advantage of them.
Friday, February 20, 2009
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Does Medicare or Medicade or other government medical insurance pay for smoking cessation?
ReplyDeleteI think that it pays for it while the person is inpatient, but not when the person is outpatient, but I'm not sure about the outpatient part.
ReplyDeleteAny and all medical expenses should be covered in a legitimate effort to get anyone to quit smoking. Period. No matter who insures you, no matter if you have no insurance at all. It's probably cost effective x10, to say nothing of moral and humane.
ReplyDeletePsst! If everyone quit smoking, who's gonna pay for S-Chip? Just asking. :)
ReplyDeleteInsurance companies have been aware of the Wellbutrin angle for years now.
ReplyDelete"Any and all medical expenses should be covered in a legitimate effort to get anyone to quit smoking. Period. No matter who insures you, no matter if you have no insurance at all."
ReplyDeleteYea, the hell with personal responsibility, motivation, discipline and all that conservative crap.
Signed,
Ex smoker who quit because I don't expect others to carry my burdens.