Specific brand levothyroxine

[nosydney]

Does anyone know where I can buy the Mercury Pharma brand of Levothyroxine please? I have just seen my endocrinologist and he feels that the drop in my t4 levels may be due to absorption problems and that sticking to one fixed brand might solve the problem. So I bought a private prescription because I know the NHS docs aren't allowed to prescribe specific brands, but now I can't find a pharmacist who can guarantee a regular supply of this particular brand. Has anyone else had this problem and, if so, how did they solve it? All suggestions gratefully received!

[Hidden]

Not sure where you are based, but my little local pharmacy always supplies me with Mercury Pharma 100s. Di

[nosydney in reply to Hidden]

I'm in Southport, Merseyside. And I'm green with envy! But then in this neck of the woods you have to jump through hoops every 3 months to get a T4 test!

[Hidden in reply to nosydney]

Find a little pharmacy that will supply it and then tell them that’s the only brand you want. I don’t have it specified on my prescription.

[nosydney in reply to Hidden]

Tried telling a pharmacy what I wanted once and was told 'it's not about what you want, it's about what we can get'!

[helvella Administrator]

NHS doctors can write prescriptions for specific makes if they believe it justified. So far as I can tell, it makes no difference to the cost to the NHS beyond the toner to print the prescription.

[ Comment about cost is for levothyroxine. For other medicines, most especially where there are "real" branded versions, yes, it can make a significant difference to NHS cost. ]

[nosydney in reply to helvella]

I didn't know that. Might try pointing that out to my GP!

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to nosydney]

My NHS prescription for Levothyroxine says clearly at top "Mercury Pharma brand only" and has done for at least twenty years

It has become more difficult in recent years to get pharmacies to follow this

Best to find a helpful small independent pharmacy who's understanding and prepared to actually follow that instruction

Large chains often ignore brand instruction

ALWAYS check the bag contains right brand BEFORE leaving the shop (Few years ago, when I checked I had three different brands in bag....none of them the right ones!)

[silverfox7]

When the pharmacy told me to stick to the same brand many many years ago now she asked which brand would I prefer so I said which one was she most likely to be able to source as that seemed the best approach so she said whatever Mercury Pharmacy was called back then. So I said I had better test it out first but she said no, just ask doctor to name it and if that brand doesn't work out the. We shall look at another. I didn't need to change and was more stable after doing that.

[Saltwater]

It's a constant battle every 28 days to get hold of the same brand of Levo for me, despite it being 'on the system' at the large chain pharmacy, it is always 'entertaining' to see what's actually in my bag. I have asked if I can stock up on the ones that suit me when they do come in stock, but this got a NO as well. I can tolerate several brands well, but cannot tolerate Teva.

In other countries, they prescribe Levo in bulk where you are guaranteed more consistency in your medication, sometimes 200 at a time and come with a cutter so you can adjust when necessary. My friend lives in Australia and they get almost a year supply and different strengths so that they can adjust where necessary. You have so much more control over your medication and it makes sense so long as you store the medication correctly.

No wonder we have so many cheap generic brands in this country. If the NHS want to cut the cost of this kind of medication, then why don't they stop sending out 28 day prescriptions on a monthly repeat, especially for established patients. There is only one month that has 28 days in it. It has got to be costing more money to offer meds in the short term like this, not to mention all the paperwork! Put that money into better quality medication and health care.

[nosydney]

Sounds like a sensible idea - so no chance of that happening! I struggle to get a T4 test every 3 months because the received wisdom is that only TSH counts. Not if you have secondary hypothyroidism it doesn't. So then they claim that secondary is rare but you can't help wondering is it rare? Or are they're just not picking up on cases? I know they have to economise but sometimes the patients' interests are just ignored.

[Hairtoday]

I have been told by a number of pharmacies that they have no control over which brand of Levo is delivered to them. They do understand the issues though and sometimes if they are delivered Mercury Pharma they keep some for me.

Otherwise I just leave plenty of time to trawl around various pharmacists and before I hand over my NHS prescription I check that they have Mercury Pharma. I found out the hard way that other brands don’t work for me. It felt as if I wasn’t medicated at all. I am lucky enough to have a wide range of options though because I’m based in London. Good luck!

[helvella Administrator]

See how to write prescriptions for specific makes of levothyroxine here:

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...