Ability to Import Prescription Drugs Vital for Mental Health Patients
posted Fri, 17 Dec 2010Prescription drug importation could make a big difference for a particular population of Americans—mental health patients. A recent study found that people on Medicaid with mental illnesses are having an especially hard time accessing their needed medications.
As many as a third of patients followed in the study, which appears in a recent issue of General Hospital Psychiatry, were unable to get the medication they were prescribed because Medicaid did not approve it.
Access to a particular medication is critical for mental health patients who might go months or even years before finding the appropriate drug and dosage to stabilize their particular condition.
When mental health patients can’t get the prescription drugs they need, they aren’t the only ones that suffer. Families and friends are affected and public safety may even become an issue. In addition, hospitalization and emergency room visits increase, creating an even greater burden on our already overtaxed healthcare system.
Melissa Maki, RxRights