1. < Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR)

Have an appointment with rheumatology at Perelman Center - UPenn

Posted by joan7 @joan7, Jan 11 8:30pm

Six and a half months later, tomorrow is finally here! I have my appointment with the Rheumatology Dept. at Perelman Center, in Philly.

This is my currently situation. I have been weaned down to 10 mg of Prednisone from 60 over the past several months, and also take 200 mg of Hydrochloroquine 2 times a day for the past month. This week I started to feel my symptoms coming back? Although it has not bothered me in the past, I'm going to cut out the caffeine to see if this makes a difference (one decaf coffee and a sugar free peach ice tea usually on most days). I will also be cutting down big time on sugar - my numbers have been bouncing all over the place for a while now, and that also makes me not feel well).

I do have a Rheumatologist locally that is the greatest. She diagnosed me, treated me, and has followed me closely since August, 2023. At that time, she recommended that I keep the appointment with UPenn's Perelman Center, Rheumatology Dept., because her group collaborates with UPenn on many cases. So this is what I need help with. I have a running list of questions right now for the Rheumatologist at UPenn. Are there any other questions that you can think of that would be helpful for me to ask the Rheumatologist at UPenn? Please let me know. Any questions are welcome!

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR) Support Group.

seniormed | @seniormed | Jan 13 2:58pm
In reply to @joan7 "You are soooo lucky that you were able to get an appointment so quickly. I will..." + (show)
@joan7

You are soooo lucky that you were able to get an appointment so quickly. I will definitely keep in mind the portal for future questions.

Medication expenses are truly ridiculous. What I don't understand is when you go on Medicaid at 65, the prices are higher than when you had insurance before that (for most people). Aren't things suppose to get cheaper since you're most likely already retired or cannot afford to retire?

ANYONE INTERESTED in lower medication costs (out of pocket)? My GI doctor mentioned yesterday that Mark Cubin, from Shark Tank, has a new pharmacy available where the prices for medications is a lot cheaper than pharmacy prices (whether insurance covers them or not), because he has cut out the middle man from the process. What I find to be very interesting is that a 90 day supply of medication is only a few dollars more than a 30 day supply. Anyone interested can check it out at https://costplusdrugs.com/.

FOR EXAMPLE: I was shocked by the cost of Nexium. I know that it is an OTC drug, but if you purchase it from a store it costs around $25.99 for the 42 count. Sixty (60) Count thru Cost Plus Drugs is $11, and 90 count is $14 (you would pay thru a pharmacy approx. $52; that a savings of $41).

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Another app I use to save is GoodRx. It is free and it often
gets a lower price than part D. Pharmacists are fine with
running the numbers and honoring the coupon price.
I obtain my expensive inhaler from a Canadian pharmacy online with my prescription from my primary.
Florida is now obtaining some commonly prescribed meds
at low prices from Canada sourcing with federal consent.
Never neglect applying for prescription assistance on biologic drugs unless you are high income. Shopping or swapping to OTCs with your doctors agreement helps as well as shopping different pharmacy chains for comparison.

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