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Insurance Companies Push for More Over-the-Counter Allergy Drugs

Aired April 23, 2003 - 14:46   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, if you're sneezing, wheezing and coughing your way through spring, this story is for you. What if you could buy drugs like Allegra and Zyrtec right over-the-counter? Well, is making a drug easier to get best for the consumer?
CNN Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen joins us to tell us now -- what do you think?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think it is good and it is bad for the consumer. It is good for the consumer when something goes over-the-counter. For example, the drug Claritin went over-the-counter about six months ago, so now you don't have to go to your doctor's office. You just head on down to the drugstore and you buy some.

It's bad for the consumer because, boy, can it be expensive. If you had insurance and you were getting Claritin as a prescription, it was whatever your co-pay was, let's say $10 for the month. Now, over- the-counter Claritin is $30 for the month. So who likes this? Well, insurance companies like this. When Claritin was by prescription, they had to pay for it. Now you have to pay for it. So if Zyrtec and Allegra go over-the-counter, it will mean more money out of people's pockets. Now, some insurance companies like this idea so much of drugs going over-the-counter, that they are telling people who are on prescription allergy medications, gee, don't you really want to try Claritin instead, because that way the insurance companies save money.

PHILLIPS: Well, is that the only way to save money? There have got to be some other alternatives.

COHEN: Yes, there are alternatives. There are ways to save money. First of all, you can go to the drugstore -- and you don't necessarily have to buy the brand name Claritin. There is generic Claritin. It goes by the generic name loratadine, so you can look for that name instead of Claritin, and that is the active ingredient. It would be the active ingredient, the same thing as getting Claritin.

The other thing you can do is you can ask your doctor, Do I really need these drugs, something like a Zyrtec or an Allegra or a Claritin? They are very expensive. You could, for example, get a nasal spray which is less expensive, and some doctors say works even better.

PHILLIPS: When do these drugs go over-the-counter?

COHEN: These two drugs, the FDA is still considering whether or not to put over-the-counter. They've been considering it for several years now, and they haven't given us any date as to when they expect to make a decision. It would be interesting to be in on those behind closed door meetings because the insurance companies would save money, so they want them to go over-the-counter, but the companies that make these two drugs, they may not be so enthusiastic about it, because of what it would do to their bottom line.

PHILLIPS: That's understandable. All right. We will continue to follow and see what happens. Thanks, Elizabeth.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Drugs>


Aired April 23, 2003 - 14:46   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, if you're sneezing, wheezing and coughing your way through spring, this story is for you. What if you could buy drugs like Allegra and Zyrtec right over-the-counter? Well, is making a drug easier to get best for the consumer?
CNN Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen joins us to tell us now -- what do you think?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think it is good and it is bad for the consumer. It is good for the consumer when something goes over-the-counter. For example, the drug Claritin went over-the-counter about six months ago, so now you don't have to go to your doctor's office. You just head on down to the drugstore and you buy some.

It's bad for the consumer because, boy, can it be expensive. If you had insurance and you were getting Claritin as a prescription, it was whatever your co-pay was, let's say $10 for the month. Now, over- the-counter Claritin is $30 for the month. So who likes this? Well, insurance companies like this. When Claritin was by prescription, they had to pay for it. Now you have to pay for it. So if Zyrtec and Allegra go over-the-counter, it will mean more money out of people's pockets. Now, some insurance companies like this idea so much of drugs going over-the-counter, that they are telling people who are on prescription allergy medications, gee, don't you really want to try Claritin instead, because that way the insurance companies save money.

PHILLIPS: Well, is that the only way to save money? There have got to be some other alternatives.

COHEN: Yes, there are alternatives. There are ways to save money. First of all, you can go to the drugstore -- and you don't necessarily have to buy the brand name Claritin. There is generic Claritin. It goes by the generic name loratadine, so you can look for that name instead of Claritin, and that is the active ingredient. It would be the active ingredient, the same thing as getting Claritin.

The other thing you can do is you can ask your doctor, Do I really need these drugs, something like a Zyrtec or an Allegra or a Claritin? They are very expensive. You could, for example, get a nasal spray which is less expensive, and some doctors say works even better.

PHILLIPS: When do these drugs go over-the-counter?

COHEN: These two drugs, the FDA is still considering whether or not to put over-the-counter. They've been considering it for several years now, and they haven't given us any date as to when they expect to make a decision. It would be interesting to be in on those behind closed door meetings because the insurance companies would save money, so they want them to go over-the-counter, but the companies that make these two drugs, they may not be so enthusiastic about it, because of what it would do to their bottom line.

PHILLIPS: That's understandable. All right. We will continue to follow and see what happens. Thanks, Elizabeth.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Drugs>