That is a good question to have with your doctor. It is a progressive disease and different for everyone. Each drug, including the prednisone comes with potential side effects. I took both for years but eventually had to stop the hydroxy because of side effects it started to have on my eyes. And of course, both drugs do different things to your RA. Are you doing alright on just the prednisone? How long have you been on just it. Does it seem to be controlling the RA? These are things to talk with your doctor about. Tell him your concerns. Maybe he will let you hold off on the hydroxy. With RA the fact that you aren't getting worse may be a sign that the drug is working. I take Humira and people ask me all the time, "Is it working?" Well, it isn't getting worse is my usual answer. Whether it is because of the medicine or not is irrelevant for me. I'm not going to stop just to see if it gets worse. The damage isn't worth the risk to me. Good luck.