Can't believe the cost of adderall xr to stay sane is it worth it?


Oh my gosh my dr switched me to 30 mg adderall xr twice daily. Had my husband pick it up and told him that it would probably be a little expensive. Anyway he didn't call me and tell me that it was $375.00.

Earlier today I was reading about various side effects of these drugs--heart problems. Good grief the price alone will give you cardiac arrest.

My insurance is changing they said that maybe this will be covered. Pharmacist said that most insurance companies won't cover the xr, but would adderall regular. She said you'd have to take more pills to get the equivalent to xr.

Now I have these pills, so I can't return them so I'll take them. Given my luck it will probably be great. Even if insurance did pay, the'd only pay 20% perhaps.

I hope it's worth it. Sometimes I think just stay on the xanax when things get rough and muddle through as I have done all my life. The other alternative is to stay on Ritalin. I would never had let my husband buy them. $150.00 I could handle.

Do you reliaze that $375. is a car payment for some people.

I am in SHOCK!:soapbox:

If you can stomach the ups and downs of regular release than by all means forget the XR. Normal release comes in 30mg so your pharmacist is wrong about the taking more pills thing. You'd have to take 30mg then redose 4 to 6 hours later with 30mg more. Regular release averages somewhere around $70 for a months supply.

i think that's ridiculous. :( i didnt realize there even was a non-XR. sounds like you definitely have to try that. btw, $375 is more than any car payment i've ever made.
my insurance wont cover any brand names so thats probably not an option for me anyways.
id there no generic available?
and why was ritalin costing you $150? i thought the generic was quite inexpensive?

The instant release Adderall is much cheaper, mostly because you can buy the generic version.

The short answer for why prescription drugs are so expensive in general is because few people pay the full price. Many people receive prescription drug coverage through private insurance obtained through their employer (My out-of-pocket cost for AdderallXR is $20, insurance covers the rest), or else though Medicaid or Medicare Part D. People without health insurance are often eligible for drug discount plans from individual pharmacy chains, and drug companies will cover the cost of meds for people with no insurance who meet certain income criteria. As a result, the actual cost of the meds is rarely paid by the consumer, and thus the normal market forces that set the prices for most of the other things we buy are not operating, resulting in higher costs.

Unfortunately, people whose insurance companies won't cover that particular drug are royally screwed. Also, $375 seems rather excessive, even for Adderall XR. I just filled my prescription for this month today, I take 3 30mg pills per day, for 90 pills total, and on the pharmacy receipt, the total amount of the drug (not what I paid, but what the total would have been without insurance) was $400. This was for 90 pills, however, whereas 30 pills would likely cost much less. I was using Rite-Aid pharmacy, and different pharmacies will have different costs.

Generic Adderall would probably be closer to $50-$80, possibly less. It would require more pills total, as each XR pill is the equivalent of 2 regular instant release Adderall pills taken four hours apart, but the cost per pill is so much lower that it is much cheaper. While I personally find Adderall XR to have some advantages in terms of convenience of dosing and smoother absorbtion, the difference is certainly not worth a $300 price difference (see what I mean about how prices that don't affect the consumer aren't subject to normal market forces?). I think it would be worth it to go with the generic form.

Also, many prescription drug plans offer an option to mail in a claims form for medications that were not covered at the pharmacy, so it might be worth mailing one in to see if they'll cover some of it. Even 20% of $375 is still $75.

Yes, this is my problem - no insurance. I take Barr Adderall IR 30 mg 3x a day. Target matched Freds price of $54.00.

There's also a 30 trial cad you can use. There was a link to it in the Adderall forum. I think you can use a card everytime you change a dose because it says 1 card per dose on it. Maybe that would help until your insurance changes.

I just looked what the price should be from aetna, they say their cost for Adderall XR is $200 from the pharmacy for twice day at 30mg. Maybe you sould consider a new pharmacy.

I just started on Adderal XR 10mg, once a day, 3 weeks ago. It cost me $45 at CVS pharmacy. I was diagnosed with ADD 3 months ago, at the age of 43. This dosage is working for me so far, I'm focused.
I've also been on antidepressants for 10 years, currently taking Lexapro 20mg daily which works well.

I just looked what the price should be from aetna, they say their cost for Adderall XR is $200 from the pharmacy for twice day at 30mg. Maybe you should consider a new pharmacy.Yep, around $200 is approximately what I paid for my Adderall XR for the past 4-5 years (without insurance)!

I don't know where you are buying your meds Honda, but I would definitely consider calling around to the various pharmacies to get price quotes!

The difference from one pharmacy to the next can often be quite substantial, so it pays to call around if you have no insurance, or if your insurance company doesn't pay for a particular ADD medication!

Good luck with the Adderall XR! :)