Private prescription for Liothyronine

[amandaalexa]

I have a private prescription for 5mcg Liothyronine 28 tablets X2 which Smartway pharmacy are charging £240. Does anyone know if it is possible to get it any cheaper? I have to take 5mcg twice a day and £240 a month is too expensive for me. Any help is much appreciated. Amanda

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK]

I can link you to my blog list of NHS prices - but private prices will be higher. Possibly very much higher. And 5 and 10 microgram tablets are more expensive than 20 microgram tablets.

Current NHS Drug Tariff Liothyronine Prices

Link to a blog post of Monthly NHS Drug Tariff prices for Liothyronine products from January 2023 onwards.

Also includes link to information for Northern Ireland and Scotland. (Wales' data is based on England.)

helvella.blogspot.com/p/cur...

Last updated 26th April 2024

Thyroid UK list of pharmacies here:

thyroiduk.org/get-support/t...

[beh1]

I’m sorry, can’t help with the private prescription for 5mcg but suggest you get prescription for 20 mcg tablets in future and cut into 4. Many of us have to do this. It’s a faff but much cheaper as Helvella has stated.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

20mcg Thybon Henning is far cheaper at £60-£80 per 100 tablets

Cut into 1/4 using sharp craft scalpel or pill cutter

[amandaalexa in reply to SlowDragon]

My doctor is refusing to prescribe Thybon Henning. He sent me an email saying this " Non-licensed medication can only be prescribed if there is a clinical indication. As you are not lactose intolerant, I am unfortunately unable to prescribe the Tybon Henning brand for you. " Hopefully Roseway pharmacy will be able to help

[RedApple Administrator in reply to amandaalexa]

Did you explain that you've asked for Thybon Henning to be prescribed because it is cheaper for the NHS?

[edit] Sorry, is this a private prescription that means you are paying for the medicine?

[amandaalexa in reply to RedApple]

Yes it's private

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to amandaalexa]

So if it’s private prescription and prescription is for 20mcg tablets you can request pharmacy supply Thybon Henning

It’s significantly cheaper than 20mcg Teva, Morningside or Mercury Pharma brands

Thybon is lactose free

Many people say it’s “smoother” than other brands

[amandaalexa in reply to SlowDragon]

It is massively cheaper so I don't know why the doctor is being awkward

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to SlowDragon]

Technically pharmacies are expected to supply UK licensed products if they are available. Price is not regarded as a basis for prescribing non-licensed products.

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to helvella]

But is that still true with private prescription?

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to SlowDragon]

I believe so. But the MHRA statement is less clear about a cost/price basis:

Off-label or unlicensed use of medicines: prescribers’ responsibilities

gov.uk/drug-safety-update/o...

Prescribing unlicensed medicines

gmc-uk.org/professional-sta...

Neither repeats what I have read before about price not being a justification. The GMC statement says:

the dosage specified for a licensed medicine would not meet the patient’s need

I could argue that reducing the cost sufficiently for a patient to get the medicine they need DOES fall within this. The too costly product self-evidently does not meet the patient's needs if they cannot afford it! But I'm pretty sure they would argue against.

I do wish we were sure that all medicines like Thybon Henning - products that are supplied to some markets but not in the UK - always had an English-language Patient Information Leaflet.

[inthedoldrums]

I am on 2.5mcg three times a day at the moment and have them compounded by Roseway Labs. They charge me £77 for 100 X 2.5mcg. They have a private GP who charges £55 for initial consultation/prescription and £35 for follow ups. They also can leave repeat prescriptions online for you. I don't know how much it would cost to compound the 5mcg ones but might be worth a try.

[amandaalexa]

Thanks very much for your replies. I will contact Roseway labs. I don't mind getting 20mcg and cutting the tablets. I will also ask the cost of 5mcg compounded. Anything would be better than paying £240 a month for such a small amount 🫠

[Jaydee1507 Administrator in reply to amandaalexa]

Your prescriber will probably need to rewrite the prescription. Just a heads up.

[FoggyThinker in reply to amandaalexa]

Just be aware that compounded seems always to be capsules with roseway (for NDT and T4 anyway) and they don't advise splitting those, although some do, but they also carry some manufactured tablets just not a huge range. £77 seems to be the min compounding price so it's worth checking how many you can get for that especially if you're on a stable dose, e.g. 100 or 200 x 125 or 150 T4 compounded are all £77

[McPammy]

I get my private prescription dispensed by Roseway pharmacy in London through my private endocrinologist. It cost £60 for x100 20mcg tablets. They post them out after paying on line. I cut them into quarters and take 5mcg twice a day. A box lasts me over 6 months.

[Judithdalston in reply to McPammy]

Snap, literally just got my Roseway 20 Thybon Henning T3 order this morning cost £60…I suspect will be last till I renew their yearly prescription.

[Poppy_Ann]

Why are you on a private prescription and not a normal one? If you have a normal script then you do not have to pay as it is one of the things that grant you free prescriptions for life, you could move to Wales as they have free meds for everyone (which I think all of the UK should have) good luck getting it sorted out.

[Rapunzel in reply to Poppy_Ann]

The issue is not that Wales allows free prescriptions for everyone. The issue is obtaining liothyronine from the NHS, anywhere in our benighted United Kingdom. I will not be moving to Wales, as I don't enjoy driving at 20mph nor having my garden spied upon to see if my council tax can be overhauled. 😁

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to Poppy_Ann]

All of the UK except England have no NHS prescription charges.

But if no NHS prescriber will prescribe what you need/want, then you have no choice regardless which part of the UK you live in.

[pandacat2]

Same as various people have said here. I take 4 x 10mcg liothyronine every day. I get a box of 100 20mcg Tybon Henning tablets from Smartway for £65. These have a line down the middle so you can split them in half to make 10mcg, then you could cut them in half again for your 5mcg dose (personally i just bite it in half again if I need 5mcg but you could cut with a blade).

This would work out as 200 days for medication for you for £65 so a much better deal. I started on those 5mcg tablets and it was so expensive!

[amandaalexa in reply to pandacat2]

Yes that would be much better! I'm with Dr Frey at County Health online and they haven't given me the option to get 20mcg tablets. On my prescription it says Liothyronine 5mcg 2 boxes of 28 a month. I will get in touch with them and see if the prescription can be changed to 20mcg. Thank you

[pandacat2]

Might be worth having a chat with Smartway and seeing if they can dispense the prescription differently, but yeah, you might need the prescription revised in order to get the 20mcg tablets.

[Brightness14]

Yes, I do get these prescribed here in France free of charge. You can but T3 online which I have done in the past. These can be cut into either four or eight pieces and are size 25mcg.

I paid £46 for 200 tablets. This T3 is made in Turkey.

[Popscicle]

They’re ripping you off! When I first started Liothyronine 2 years ago I first script for 3m of 20mcg tabs was £90.

[amandaalexa in reply to Popscicle]

Definitely! According to Smartway pharmacy your doctor has to give reason why they are prescribing Thybon Henning Liothyronine as it's unlicensed in UK . I'm still waiting for Roseway pharmacy to get back to me but I've also asked my doctor to change my prescription so just waiting for his reply

[Heiseygirl]

Amazon pharmacy for me is $68. And change