Help In Getting Non-formulary Real Zocor

[RockyA1911]

Hey all,

A little history. Back in Feb 2006 my VA PCP wanted me to take ZOCOR (The real stuff by brand name, not just simvistatin). My cholesterol at that time was 205. In March of 2006 I decided to go ahead and try the medication as I was encouraged to by other VA doctors including the neurologist. I called the VA Clinic and asked the doctor to go ahead and prescibe the Zocor. In late March of 2006 I received the brand named ZOCOR, small triangle pink pills with ZOCOR embedded on them. I was to take 1/2 a tablet (10 mg) daily. So the last week of March of 2006 I was taking them faithfully.

In May of 2006 I had another fasting blood draw of which my total cholesterol was 147. I felt good and didn't experience any adverse side effects from the ZOCOR. In August of 2006 I had another VA Clinic visit but they did not tell me that I was going to have blood drawn so I did not fast. The lab result was total cholesterol of 171, but I had eaten a big breakfast such as bacon, pancakes, scrambled eggs, orange juice, and whole milk. The Dr said it was ok.

I continued to take the Zocor and in October of 2006 and my fasting total cholesterol was 158. At this point I was taking Zocor for over a year up until June of 2007. I still had not experienced any muscle weakness, joint pain, etc. All was well.

In the middle of June 2007 I noticed my second refill was not the brand name ZOCOR and had no name on them except 93 on one side and 7154 on the other and instead of being triangle shaped they where round and pink. It was a generic form of Simvistatin.

The first week in July I started getting cramps, and a stiff neck. Then my wrists hurt while riding a motorcycle. The last week in August I could not bear taking the generic crap anymore. I could not feel my left hand and couldn't squeeze the clutch or even feel it. My left foot got numb etc., so I quit taking the crap. I also had a blood draw on 17 August 2007 and my cholesterol was up to 191 with triglycerides up to 387 from previous 147.

Not only did the generic cause me harm, but it raised my cholesterol instead of lowering it. Point it doesn't work as it should and it is also harmful to me. I had no problems with the previous over a year long taking of brand named Zocor that was previously furnished by the VA.

I complained via IRIS and requested I be prescribed the now non-formulary ZOCOR due to the problems and adverse reactions I had with the generic. My VA PCP put in a non-formulary prescription request for the ZOCOR. I received a letter from the Director of the VAMC which was written by the VAMC Pharmacist. The Pharmacist denied any problems with the generic and stated it was equivalent and also got her way and denied my doctors non-formulary request for ZOCOR. I wrote them and tole them they should not be messing around with statins and that I had been ok with the ZOCOR for over a year, no side effect, cholesteral well below normal and don't understand why they will not go out and buy it for me as the regs state there must be a procedure to request non-formulary drugs within each VAMC.

The Pharmacist then recommended I try some of their other generic statins that were in the formulary and also stated that my cholesterol has been fluctuating but not mentioning that the 205 was before I had even taken any statins.

I am a believer of if it ain't broke don't fix it. Since the generic simvistatin hurt me and scared the crap out of me I am more than hesitant to try any more generic statins period. I was lucky this time and have my feeling back after almost a couple of months without any statin drug. I have been without medicine since middle of August.

I refuse to be a guinea pig so I guess I can't get the ZOCOR unless I buy it myself I was told at the clinic.

I happened to recall the last line of the letter from the Director in Iowa City stating "The VA strives to provide the highest quality of healthcare and medicines to our veterans".

Kind of an oxymoron isn't it? Yet, top shelf medicines and brand named medicines are not even made available to veterans at all.

What do I need to do the get the VA to give me back the ZOCOR I had been taking for over a year with no problems?

[Pete53]

I think your problem may be that the dose is to low. I take the Zocar and Neurontin using the generics and my cholesterol reading was 124. However, I take 40 mgs instead of 10.

For me the generics pretty much work.

[betrayed]

Its all about money :) They stopped my plavix after a year VA said I didnt need it. Yes I do I have a coated stent in my heart so I need to take it the rest of my life. I went to the non VA doc who did my heart cath and he said I need it. I took my RX to CVS and used my tricare and got it for $9. I LOVE MY RX TRICARE COVERAGE I get most my drugs from the VA, well all except plavix. They just started me on the round generic for zocor also, I take half of a 40mg. I all ready have those symptoms but my non VA PCP says my liver function is good. But dam do my joints hurt and go numb. ITS ALL ABOUT THE $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ Maybe I will ask my non VA PCP for a rx for real zocor. If its available in generic then it will only be $3.

THANK YOU FOR PUTTING MY EDIT BUTTON BACK

Edited October 10, 2007 by BETRAYED

[RockyA1911]

Sixcents,

Yes, please furnish the breakdowns of each if you would since you have access to that information. Zocor (Simvistatin) is made by Merck. The current generic product is made by TEVA/IVAX. Would like both the active and inactive ingredients for a 20 mg tablet.

The Consumer Guide to Generic Drugs by the National Consumers League with grant provided by Merck-Medco states "the inactive ingredients may be different. Inactive ingredients are used to keep a tablet from crumbling, add bulk to a tablet to make it large enough to handle, and/or provide a pleasant taste or color. Differences in inactive ingredients are generally harmless, but SOME PEOPLE MAY HAVE A REACTION

TO THEM."

I must be one of those people and so is Allan and Betrayed it appears so far on this site, along with me. So that is three of us in just one afternoon since I posted. I am sure there are a lot of other vets with the same adverse reactions besides us. Maybe we need to do a survey confined to ZOCOR/SIMVISTATIN users and see just how many in a week. Of course the VA stated they have had no instances or reports of any of the symptoms I experienced with the generic simvistatin. It's not in my head. I have never had a generic anything work for me. I needed CIPRO one time and was given CIPROFLAXIN instead, the generic and it didn't do crap for my sinus infection, took them all as prescribed. I finally got the brand named CIPRO and boom within 20 minutes the congestion broke loose and it worked.

I had another kind of generic antibiotic that gave me a severe fever and headache and actually made me feel worse, and another that gave me a rash and almost hives.

No! I'd bet a dollar to a donut that the generic stuff is not EXACTLY the same exact ingredients and exact forms of the chemicals within each. I know a lot more people that the generics haven't worked for them than I do that have. As you know there are many forms of Niacin and so is with the others but it is still Niacin, but the question is- - - Is the Niacin in the form of Hexatonic Nicotinate or one of the other multiple forms of Niacin? Niacin in the form of HN is flush free whereas a lot of the multiple other forms of Niacin are not and produce "Flushing".

Oh, the patent time is 10 years. Zocor's had expired and from what I have read a judge decided which two generic makers could produce the generic and that no one else could produce the generics until after the two generic producers have been in production for 6 months. I believe the two generic makers are from India or something like that.

I see on the news every few months where a generic medicine caused high blood pressure, stroke, heart attack, and even deaths. I've lived long enough to see many of them taken from the market because of the adverse effects. There is a reason that more people than not fear the generic medicines either by experience or media reports.

I have BC/BS Federal Employee health insurance, but even they try to pawn off on you the generic brand even though your doctor writes the prescription for the brand name but doesn't state "No Generics" on the prescription.

I still stand by that our veterans should have the same brand named drugs in the top 5 sellers made available to us just like the regular public and our so called representatives have. To give us AB medicine instead of the A list medicine. Come on now! That's like telling us "Thank you for your service and we honor you by feeding you a grade B steak instead of a Grade A Angus Beef steak.......and then insult us by telling us it is the same. Yeah it is both beef and remnants but we all know there is a big difference in taste and quality with the first bite without having to cut through the gristle.

Grade A medicines is the least they should do for us, we are supposed to have the best health care there is under the VA, afterall the sport that slogan at least once a week. This country should be ashamed, no appalled to find that after all the sacrifices we vets have endured to be furnished second rate medicines only.....So after all we have done in the line of duty for out country we are denied top shelf or within the top five ranked medicines.

Edited October 10, 2007 by RockyA1911

[sixthscents]

Sure will but I will have to do it as an attachment... If anyone is wondering I use "Physician's Desk Reference, 2007". It's a great program that covers all the drugs, and updates from the internet for new ones daily. It's very comprehensive. I'll try and get er donr tonight.

[sixthscents]

OK, as I stated....

All drugs have active and inactive ingredients... but the inactive ones are simply the coloring, or dye, the stabalizing compound etc. They shouldn't have ANY effect... but maybe this is what is causing the problems... I simply dont know, and don't understand.

so like you said Rocky this could be the problem I just dont know, but the inactive ingredients shouldnt make any difference...

attached is the ZOCOR monograph... its kinda big. Will attach generic next. Thanks for the clarification on the 10 years by the way. Like I said I wasnt sure, but that sounds really excessive to me... and I thought 5 years was too long.

ZOCOR.doc

[sixthscents]

OK, there's a bunch more making it than TIVA/IVAX... this is going to take a bit, my registration keeps saying wrong user name. I'll figure it out. Sorry for the delay.