Alesse Will Pay the Difference - Birth Control Users Click here!

[Jacq]

Anyone who uses Alesse or is looking to switch birth controls PLEASE check this out!

I was at my Doctor's the other day, and he told me that there is now a non-branded (generic) version of Alesse on the market. He told me that generic brands of birth control are not dosage-guaranteed the same way branded ones are, and recommended strongly that I use name-brand Alesse. But here's the awesome part!

He gave me a plastic card to give to my pharmacist along with the prescription. With this card, Alesse will pay the difference in price between their brand of Birth Control and the generic one. I used this card at the pharmacy yesterday, and three months of Alesse cost me $2.33! Yes, that's after GST.

There is no form, no anything. You don't pay up front - the discount is deducted automatically. The pharmacy told me the card is accepted at any pharmacy in Canada.

Please, ladies, talk to your doctor about this if you're interested. I'm so happy my Dr gave me this card.


(I hope this is the correct board to put this on. Please let me know if I'm mistaken.)

[Bloo]

you've posted in the right section,glad to hear such useful info,thanks for sharing!!<I'LL p know< friends my let>

[ninamaryjoe]

I've been using the generic for months without a problem. Drugs are regulated quite strictly I can't see the generic being much different than the brand name plus most insurance companies will not pay for the brand name if there is a generic option unless you have proof of a specific reason such as an allergy to a filler or coating used in the generic. I think this is just a drug company trying to hold on to business now that their patent is up. I'm a nurse I deal with many drugs on a daily basis. Drug companies are allowed to patent a new drug formulation for about 2 years then anyone can produce and sell the drug. If this card is giving you a deal go for it but generic drugs are definitely safe and effective.

[Jacq]

Thank you for your input, Ninamaryjoe. In most things, generic brands (like blood pressure meds, painkillers, that sort of thing) are fine. But after talking to my doctor and my mum (who is also an RN), they both told me that medications like birth control benefit from being branded because there is a much higher guarantee that there is little-to-no change of dosage from pill to pill. Since BC uses such small dosages of a mix of hormones, it is easy to get a variation between pills - iirc, Canadian Health law states that a 15-20% deviation in the generic brand is acceptable. My doctor said I wasn't going to get pregnant or anything drastic using the generic brand birth control, but he did advise me that the more common side effects (nausea, headache, etc) are lessened by using a branded BC. If this card expires, I will probably switch to the generic brand, or a less expensive alternative. But until then, I am very happy with this.

[robbiebaby69]

Great post! Thanks!

[penny_lane]

wow that's awesome!