I am happy to hear that new antihistamines are going to be OTC.

I have Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS) and the old antihistamines exacerbated the condition terribly. I didn't know that for a long time, and suffered a lot.

I just tried loratadine, which I think is Claritin, and I'm not sure if it exacerbated the RLS or not, but the thing that helps me the most is Ipratropium, which, unfortunately, is prescription only, but really dries me up.

Seems like we are over the barrel, no matter what!

Right now, my Allegra-D is covered by my insurance. As a generic, it won't be. Right now I just pay out a $2 co-pay once a month. Assuming it ends up with a price similar to Claritin-D, I'll end up having to pay $36 a month ($18 every two weeks, at least).

I'll also have to deal with the ridiculous legal restrictions intended to stop people buying decongestants for use in meth labs, so I won't be able to buy a month of medication at a time and I'll have the joy of handing over photo ID and signing a register and being scrutinized like a criminal each and every time. We go through this frequently, since both my partner and my daughter are also allergy sufferers. The law is supposed to allow a person to purchase a 30 day supply of medication without a problem, but the way things work out, we're often informed that we can't actually do that. Trying to keep the two of them supplied with OTC medications with three IDs is difficult enough. Keeping all three of us supplied will be an absolute nightmare - we'd had to do it before, and one of us was always going without allergy meds because we simply couldn't get them for one reason or another.

So while I'm normally quite happy to hear of lessened restrictions on anything, in this case it represents a personal problem for me and mine thanks to the unfortunate state of U.S. healthcare/economy/legal silliness.

Kathleen MacNaughton, Health Pro

1/20/11 2:47pm

I hear you, TechnoMom. My mother is on Methadone for pain and it's kind of embarrassing whenever I get the prescription filled because I feel like a druggie. Even worse to feel like that for allergy medicine. Darn meth addicts!

 

For me, having Allegra go off prescription is a good thing, but I know for all your lucky people with prescription plans, it's a different story.

 

Hang in there,

Kathi

An allergy is a hypersensitivity disorder of the immune system. Allergic reactions occur when a person's immune system reacts to normally harmless substances in the environment. A substance that causes a reaction is called an allergen. These reactions are acquired, predictable, and rapid. Allergy is one of four forms of hypersensitivity and is formally called type I (or immediate) hypersensitivity. Acetylsalicylic Acid is an effective anti-allergic, Allergic reactions are distinctive because of excessive activation of certain white blood cells called mast cells and basophils by a type of antibody called Immunoglobulin E (IgE). This reaction results in an inflammatory response which can range from uncomfortable to dangerous.

Thanks for sharing