Another Generic Propecia Enters the U.S. Market

This past September, Camber Pharmaceuticals, Incorporated based out of Piscataway, New Jersey announced it would begin selling generic Propecia in the U.S. market. The company will be offering the drug in the 1 milligram pill in 30 count and 90 count containers. (Source: http://camberpharma.com/news/camber_PR_New%20Products%20copy.pdf) This breaks the exclusivity that Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Limited had at the beginning of the year when they entered the U.S. market in what I believe was the first offering of generic Propecia.

I found out about this when I bought my latest Propecia refill and found out it was made by Camber Pharmaceuticals. Also, I found out that the new generic is apparently cheaper than that for sale by Dr. Reddy's Laboratories. Sam's Club is offering the new generic in 90 count form for $72.53 (that's the price I paid at their Laurel, Maryland store on December 6, 2013) which is over $30 less than the generic (which was probably Dr. Reddy's) back in September (see my September 4, 2013 post). Please note that to get this price at Sam's Club, you must have an Advantage Plus membership.

The cost difference between the generic Propecia and name brand Propecia is now such that you can buy a 9 month supply of the generic for the same price approximately as you can for a 3 month supply of the name brand. This is a HUGE savings. Personally, I hope the generics continue to bring the price down on this once expensive drug.

Update March 9th, 2014: The price on this generic is holding steady. Last week, I bought a 3 month refill at Sam's Club for $72.50. Do remember you must have an Advantage Plus level membership to get this price.

Update June 6th, 2014: The price on this generic has apparently gone down a little. I bought my latest 3 month refill yesterday and, it cost me $64.43.

Sam's Club Generic Propecia

Today, I bought Sam's Club's generic Propecia for the first time. The reason I did it was for 1 reason - price. If you have a Sam's Club Advantage Plus membership, you can get a great deal on the drug. I was able to buy a 3 month supply of generic propecia for $103.57 That's over $47 cheaper than the generic Propecia at Costco. The savings is such that with 1 filling of the prescription, you can nearly pay for the increased cost of the Advantage Plus membership versus the regular Advantage membership. For a long time, I held off upgrading but, the money advantage concerning their generic Propecia was too much to pass up.

As to who makes Sam's Club generic Propecia, I couldn't find out from the literature included with my prescription who the manufacturer is. The pills look exactly the same at the ones I bought from Costco who are put out by Dr. Reddy's Lab and, I believe are made in Israel.

In regards to its effectiveness, I can't tell you that at this time as I haven't started taking it yet. However, if it works like the Costco generic Propecia, it should work fine. I've been taking that for nearly 9 months now and, I haven't noticed any difference between the generic and the name brand in effectiveness.

One important note about Sam's Club. If you have the regular Advantage membership like I did. You'll pay more for the generic Propecia at Sam's Club than you will at Costco. That was one thing that confounded me a bit. Between the 2 regular memberships, Costco offers the better price with a $20 advantage. It's when you have the Advantage Plus membership with its higher price that you get the better savings at Sam's Club. I confess I'm not thrilled about paying Sam's Club $100 a year for my Advantage Plus membership but, in this case, the savings are such they'll pay for the higher cost membership in no time.

For those men who take Propecia, you might want to look into the advantages of Sam's Club's generic Propecia. It could save you a LOT of money over the years.

FYI, I don't work for Sam's Club and, I'm not 1 of their biggest fans either. I have memberships at Sam's Club and Costco, both of which I pay for out of my own pocket just like other people out there. I find each club has its advantages. I'm aware of another club called BJ's but, I only shopped there once years ago and don't have any idea how they compare with Sam's Club or Costco.

New 1 mg Generic Propecia Available in the U.S.

Yesterday, I drove to the Arundel Mills Costco Warehouse to pick up my latest 90 day prescription refill of Propecia. The pharmacist at the counter informed me they'd given me a new generic propecia. The only generic I knew of was Proscar which is Finasteride in 5mg tablets. I never used Proscar because, I didn't want to mess with splitting the tablets into 4 pieces with a pill splitter. Supposedly Proscar was cheaper but, it wasn't worth the hassle to me.

The new generic made my Dr. Reddy's Laboratories in possibly India comes in 1mg doses like Propecia though the pills are a different color and smaller. Price wise, the generic has considerable savings. My refill cost $150.74 saving me over $57 for a 90 day supply. That amounts to over $228 a year! I was delighted with the savings.

Later, I found an article dated 3 January 2013 announcing beginning of sales of the product (http://www.fool.com/investing/businesswire/2013/01/03/dr-reddys-announces-the-launch-of-finasteride-tabl.aspx) in the U.S. on 2 January 2013. The article gives a few particulars like the size of the Propecia market in the U.S. though I don't know if they took into account those who were taking Proscar for hair loss prevention.

The big issue is the savings for Propecia users and, the knowledge they will be able to get a product that is unquestionably is what it says it is. If you bought a generic Propecia from a foreign pharmaceutical concern like I did 1 time, you couldn't be sure you were actually getting the genuine product. Presumably, with the generic Propecia made by Dr. Reddy's Laboratories, Propecia users can rest assured they're getting genuine Finasteride in the prescribed dose. NOTE: Propecia users must still have a doctors prescription to get the generic Propecia. Also, pregnant women should avoid any contact with the generic Propecia just like the regular Propecia.

Update December 7, 2013: Today, I posted a new article about a 2nd generic Propecia entering the U.S. market. It's made by Camber Pharmaceuticals Incorporated and is apparently cheaper than the generic put out by Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Limited. See my article for further information.

Costco Member Prescription Program

Yesterday, while I was collecting my latest Propecia refill at the Arundel Mills Costco, I found out they have a new member prescription program. The lady at the prescription counter was kind enough to tell me about it and enroll me. The program doesn't cost anything to Costco members and can save them between 2 and 40% on their prescriptions. However, the program isn't available to all Costco members. If you have prescription drug coverage or receive benefits from either Medicare or Medicaid, you're not eligible. Also, not all Costcos offer the program. If want to find out if your Costco does off the program, you need to call Costco at 1-800-806-0129. In regards to my Propecia, the program saved me $7. A 90 day supply of the drug normally costs $214 but thanks to the program, my refill cost me $207. Not a great savings but better than nothing. I would recommend Costco members check into the program if they think they're eligible. With money tight now a days, the savings in this program can help.

Bosley

Yesterday, I got to visit the Washington D.C. Bosley office for the first time. For those who don't know, Bosley deals with hair restoration. What is that you ask. Hair restoration deals with restoring hair on men who are going bald for various reasons. There are different ways you can deal with balding. There are hair transplants which is the most expensive method. As far as I know, this can cost between $3,000 and $4,000. The reason for that is because you have to transplant a lot of hair to make a noticeable difference in the balding area. 5 or 6 strands of hair isn't going to make much of an impact. Another method is using Rogaine cream. Rogaine can cause new hair growth however, it isn't 100% effective in all men and, it requires to apply it to the area where you want the new hair twice a day. Yet another method is laser comb. Like Rogaine, it isn't 100% effective and, you have to use the comb every other day for at least 10 but no more than 20 minutes. I have 1 of these myself but because of the hassle of using it, I use it off and on. One advantage of the comb is it is a 1 time cost. You pay the $500 plus for it and, that's all you pay. If you take Rogaine, you have to keep getting new cans of it and correspondingly keep shelling out the bucks.

Back to Bosley. Before using Bosley, I used Medical Hair Restoration who I really liked. Sadly, Bosley bought them out. In order to get my Propecia prescription (it requires one) renewed, I needed to see one of their doctors. The doctor I met at Bosley was Dr. Peter Morse. He turned out to be a very nice, informed and helpful doctor. I found out from him how things work with name brand medications and generic with the Food and Drug Administration. By this, I mean he told me what kind of variance you can have with name brand vice generic. In the case of Propecia, if must not go over a 5% variance. If it's a generic of Propecia, it can vary as much as 15%! Obviously, that means you may not be getting the required dose. Worse still, with foreign generics, there isn't any way you can find out just how much of the actual drug you're getting if any at all. I confess I was wondering about that with the Fincom-1 (Indian Propecia generic) I've been taking. You don't want to find out the hard way i.e. your hair starts falling out. Because of our chat, I will be taking more of the name brand Propecia though I wish Merck sold the stuff for less. It isn't a cheap drug.

I was advised I was eligible for hair transplants but, I don't care to spend that much money right now. I did decide to get their hair treatment package. The package includes vitamins which are supposed to be particulary good for your hair, shampoo and conditioner that helps remove DHT (the male hormone that causes baldness) and Rogaine cream. I'm curious to see what if any difference taking these will make. We'll see. I'll post future observations on here after I've given them some time to work.

Overall, the Washington D.C. Bosley practice seemed very knowledgeable and professional. They have very nice offices in Chevy Chase, Maryland with a parking lot right next to their office. I stayed at the Bosley practice for over an hour and, it cost me $3 to park there. I think that charge covered 1 to 3 hours though I'm not 100% certain on that. Getting to their offices can be a bit of a pain as driving through Washington D.C. is never fun. Cheers all!

Prescription Renewal

This past Monday, I made me yearly trip to the Medical Hair Restoration Clinic in Chevy Chase, Maryland. I needed to see Dr. Jonathon Ballon to get my Propecia prescription renewed. Propecia is a hormonal drug which blocks a certain male hormone that affects the hair follicles on men's heads. By blocking the release of a certain hormone (I don't remember its name), the hair follicles stay active and, men taking the drug are able to stop going bald as in my case. According to the folks at the clinic, the drug is 90% effective of those who take it. The drug does have one potential bad side effect in that in 1 of 250 cases, the man taking the drug will lose the ability to perform sexually. However, if that happens, I think you can take another drug (Viagra?) for that.

Anyway, I called the clinic for an appointment and found out Dr. Ballon is no longer with Medical Hair Restoration. I don't know why he left though I was saddened to hear he did. He was a very nice doctor and easy to work with. Dr. Christopher Varona has taken over for him at the clinic. Dr. Varona was kind enough to fit me into his schedule. My appointment was at 2 p.m. though I showed up early. I left early to make sure I made my appointment. I wasn't sure how long it would take me to reach the clinic. You can never be too sure about traffic in Washington D.C. and its outskirts. I played it safe and arrived early.

Dr. Varona reviewed my medical file and could see the Propecia was working. As I still have too much hair to need transplants (thankfully considering what that costs), all I needed was to take Propecia. He wrote me a new prescription and gave me 2 weeks worth of free samples which was really nice of him (it saved me $42). As he wasn't going to make any money off my visit, I bought some of the hair vitamins the clinic sells so I could repay him for seeing me. According to Dr. Varona, the REVVup supplement WON'T cause new hair growth but, it WILL make the hair you have healthier. We'll see. The clinic was offering a special where the vitamins were a 1/3 off which was nice.

Dr. Varona informed me that the clinic would be moving from its current location 5454 Wisconsin Avenue to a new location close by. He didn't tell me why they were moving. As long as my Garmin GPS can find the new location, I wasn't concerned. My GPS was real handy in finding the clinic.

So, I'm set for another year as far as Propecia is concerned. I found Dr. Varona very nice and look forward to meeting him again next year. That's all for this post. Cheers all!

Hair Update

I haven't given a report on Propecia or the laser comb in a while so here goes. The Propecia is definitely working. My hair loss has totally stopped. However, there are some negatives to the Propecia. First, there is the cost. Sam's Club is slightly cheaper than Costco but a 3 month supply of Propecia will still set you back over $180. Second, you have to take the drug at the same time every day. This was a major hassle when I was travelling because of the time difference. It was a serious hassle to have to stop what you're doing in mid-day and make sure you took your pill. It's a lot easier to take it first thing in the morning.

In regards to the laser comb, I'm not sure how well it's working or if it is. That was why I held off buying the thing initially. There isn't any set success rate with the comb barring it is more than 30% effective and less than 90%. The comb has been a pain in 3 ways. First, I have to use a stopwatch everytime I use it. You must comb your hair/top of your head with it a minimum of 10 minutes. However, it doesn't do anymore good if you go over 15 minutes. Second, you have to remember to use the comb every other day. Using it more often than that doesn't do you any extra good. Lastly, you have to be careful using the comb with your eyes. It is a laser and it could harm them if it shines directly in your eyes. I make sure I have the thing over my scalp before I turn it on. The biggest advantage of the comb is what it could save you in money if it works. The comb costs approximately $580. A 1 year supply of Propecia would cost you $720. So, in the first year, it would save you $140 and the savings continue after that.

So, that is what is happening there. I still wish I'd started on Propecia earlier. But, I'm not going to go bald so I'm happy with that and I'll deal with the hassles. If you think you might be going bald and you don't want to, you might want to check into Propecia or the laser comb.

Laser Comb Update

I've been using the laser comb I bought for a week now. It's too early to tell if it's having any effect. I do know that it is annoying using the thing. You have to remember to use it 3 times a week on non-consecutive days. For me, that means using it on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. You also need to time how long you've used the comb. I've never used the stop watch function on my watch much but, I'm using it a lot now. It doesn't do any more good if you use the comb longer than 15 minutes. It's definitely easier to take Propecia vice using the comb. Thankfully, the comb's teeth haven't pulled out too much of my hair. According to the directions, you have to have the comb's teeth touch the scalp so the laser will hit the scalp. In regards to the laser on my scalp, the only effect I've felt is some tingling on parts of my scalp. I don't know if that's a sign the laser is working or not. According to the manual, I should be able to see some benefit in a couple weeks. Stay tuned for more updates.

Dr. Ballon

I got to see Dr. Jonathan Ballon today. He's the hair restoration surgeon at Medical Hair Restoration's Bethesda office in Washington D.C. I had to see him to get my Propecia prescription renewed. The prescription is only good for 1 year. I don't know why it doesn't stay good longer. Also, I wanted to buy a laser comb from him. His office treated me really well my previous visit and I was grateful. I know I'm not one of their usual high profile clients.

In regards to the laser comb, I found out that you must use it 3 non-consecutive days for 10 to 15 minutes each time every week. You have to have the teeth of the comb touch your scalp so the laser reaches your scalp. If the laser doesn't reach your scalp, it won't work. As I understand it, what the laser does is break up the male hormone DHT in the scalp. The less DHT you have in your scalp, the more hair you'll have. Using the comb more than 3 days won't have any increased effect according to Dr. Ballon. As I previously blogged, the comb is supposedly between 30% and 90% effective. I guess they haven't been able to come up with a definite percentage like they have with Propecia. Dr. Ballon showed me one example where the comb did work. It did make a very noticeable difference. We'll see how it does on my head. Cost wise, the comb cost me $577. The comb will reportedly last for 15 years.

Concerning Propecia, I have found this drug to work. According to the folks at Dr. Ballon's office, Propecia is 90% effective in stopping any further hair loss. However, it won't cause any NEW hair growth. Propecia is also EXPENSIVE. A 3 month supply of it costs me $178.37 at Costco. According to Dr. Ballon, Merck & Co. is offering a $25 rebate for those who get a 90 day supply of the drug. According to the Merck website, the $25 rebate will be good till June 30, 2008. I hope they continue it after that.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Women and children are prohibited from taking Propecia and pregnant women should avoid all contact with Propecia as it supposedly can be absorbed through the skin.

Personal Propecial Trial Update

I felt it was time to post an update on Propecia. Propecia is a drug that decreases the amount of DHT hormone in people. For men, what this drug does is stop hair loss. This means it can prevent a guy from going bald. As far as I know, it the only drug on the market that is 90% in doing this. The drug also has very few side effects. There are three downsides I've seen to the drug. First, there is the cost. The drug is very expensive. A 3 month supply will cost you $182 from Costco. You may be able to find it cheaper elsewhere. Vanity in this case isn't cheap. Second, you must take the drug at the same time every day. I have to watch the clock every morning to make sure I take it around the same time. This can be a bit annoying. The reason for this presumably is to ensure you keep a steady low level of DHT and thereby ensure your body continues to grow new hair to replace lost hair. The third downside I've seen is that you must take it for life. If you stop taking it, your DHT levels will go back up to where they were before you started taking the drug and you'll start losing your hair again.

After 3 months of taking the drug, I can see that I'm not going any balder. Appearance wise, I appear to have a normal head of hair which is nice. It's only when you push aside some of the hair that you can see scalp. In the future, I hope to try a laser comb. The comb isn't as effective as Propecia but, it reportedly can start new growth. I'd like to get my hair thicker if possible. To any who may read this blog, if you suspect you are going bald and you don't want to, you need to see about getting yourself on Propecia as soon as possible. The reason I say that is because, the sooner you start taking the drug, the sooner you stop your hair loss and the more hair you'll retain. This is the only regret I have in my case. I could see I was gradually going bald but couldn't decide whether to really pursue the matter or not. Fortunately, I saw Dr. Ballon about the matter before I needed a more radical and expensive solution which is hair transplants. Those can cost you up to a whopping $4,000! Serious ouch!!!!!

FYI, I'm not an expert in hair loss matters nor Propecia. I'm merely stating what I know and what I've observed using Propecia. You may have different experiences with the drug. Propecia is not recommended for women or children. Before taking the drug, definitely talk to a doctor about it so you know what you're doing.

Update March 9th, 2014: Two generic versions of Propecia have come out in the United States making the drug a LOT cheaper (see blog entries about them). My latest refill cost me $72.50 for a 3 month supply at Sam's Club. However, in order to get that price, you must be an Advantage Plus level member.