Husband wants to quit smoking. He saw doctor today who prescribed for him Wellbutrin. However, when he went to have it filled, he was told Tricare won't cover it. He hasn't been able to find any other prescriptions that Tricare will cover to help him quit- we do not live near a military base- he is a recruiter. Anyone have any advice for us? Thank you

Sometimes they will not cover that exact prescription but the might cover something similar that is cheaper. They can also deny because it isn't something that they do offer under Tricare. Check the website and contact someone to find out if it is the brand or the actual prescription itself.

If it is not he might be able to deduct it on taxes.

Tricare will cover generic Wellbutrin for depression - BTDT.

I can't imagine the pharmacy even knows why he would be getting it unless its a specific dosage used only for smoking cessation, but I don't think there is one.

Did he try to get the generic substitution (bupropion)?

Not sure about the bupropion. His px says for smoking cessation. We normally are asked if we want generics when a brand name is written, but this time we weren't. Pharmacist just said Tricare will not pay for the px

Did you call Tricare themselves and ask? They are the best ones on this. If they say yes, then ask what page or where and print it out to take to the Pharmacy

I dont know if this will help, but on tricares site there is a fomulatory search where you can put in the name of the RX and find out if its covered by Tricare and how much the copay is if there is one.
When my Dad took an RX to help him stop smoking over 2 1/2 years ago his insurance didnt cover it and they paid nearly 300 out of pocket for it. To this day my Mom will say it was the best 300 she ever spent.

Sorry to jack this but I have to say that a friend stopped smoking years ago and he did the nicotin patch thing that was being done. It worked sort of he went back on later. Us girls said he should have tried our treatment which was put the nicotin patch on his chest and when he gets a craving for a cig pull the patch off. He would be in such pain he wouldn't want one and he would get rid of the unwanted chest hairs anyway. he didn't go for that one but we laughed about it

Maybe suggest that and see how it goes

Why doesn't he have the prescription filled on base. Wellbutrin is carried by the base pharmacies.

Hey I just got an idea.

Have him order it through the mail order pharmacy if he can. That way you don't have to go back and forth with a retail pharmacy.

quote:

Originally posted by SbratSsgtWife:
Why doesn't he have the prescription filled on base. Wellbutrin is carried by the base pharmacies.

he is not near a base to get it filled, he is a Recruiter so they go to a civilian pharmacy

Well, we ended up having to pay for it ourselves.. 269.99! Hopefully this stuff works because you only get 60 pills )1ea for 1st 3 days then 2ea each day after) and NO refills

quote:

Originally posted by thesimonsens:
Well, we ended up having to pay for it ourselves.. 269.99! Hopefully this stuff works because you only get 60 pills )1ea for 1st 3 days then 2ea each day after) and NO refills

Find out if you can declare it on your taxes.

You can also look at it this way, it is probably about the cost of 1 month's supply of cigarettes, maybe even 1/2 month depending on how bad he is. Then there is the cleaners, air freshners, the gum to freshen his breathe and everything else to get rid of the ciggie smell.

quote:

Originally posted by Navywifeinparadise:

quote:

Originally posted by thesimonsens:
Well, we ended up having to pay for it ourselves.. 269.99! Hopefully this stuff works because you only get 60 pills )1ea for 1st 3 days then 2ea each day after) and NO refills

Find out if you can declare it on your taxes.

You can also look at it this way, it is probably about the cost of 1 month's supply of cigarettes, maybe even 1/2 month depending on how bad he is. Then there is the cleaners, air freshners, the gum to freshen his breathe and everything else to get rid of the ciggie smell.

If its the same thing that my Dad took, it will totally pay off when smoke free.

You may want to file for reimbursement for that. Although Tricare's formulary doesn't include the name-brand drug Wellbutrin, if the prescribing physician can justify it, Tricare will pay for it. Go here https://rxnet.army.mil/pec/forms_criteria.php for the necessary forms that the doc will have to fill out. Then you can go to your region's Tricare site for the Claims form.

And best of luck to him.

I just saw this thread and had to chime in. I went the website to see if Tricare would pay for Chantix because I started smoking again. Check this out. If I'm interpreting the information correctly, they will pay for Viagra and Cialis but will not pay for a prescription to quit smoking. WTH?

I know Tricare does not pay for Chantix, and its very expensive, i used it for a few months, it does work, but unfortunatly if you go off it to soon like in my case its easy to start smoking again. but it really worked for the 2 months i was on it

quote:

Originally posted by mrsdlhall:
I just saw this thread and had to chime in. I went the website to see if Tricare would pay for Chantix because I started smoking again. Check this out. If I'm interpreting the information correctly, they will pay for Viagra and Cialis but will not pay for a prescription to quit smoking. WTH?

I look at like this: smoking is a voluntary behavior, impotence is not.

Thank you for the link but I am confused what I am exactly looking for there- That page is not user friendly at all

quote:

Originally posted by dena0206:
You may want to file for reimbursement for that. Although Tricare's formulary doesn't include the name-brand drug Wellbutrin, if the prescribing physician can justify it, Tricare will pay for it. Go here https://rxnet.army.mil/pec/forms_criteria.php for the necessary forms that the doc will have to fill out. Then you can go to your region's Tricare site for the Claims form.

And best of luck to him.

Sorry- I found it.. finally

Thank you so much- greatly appreciated

Good topic that I'll add my 2 cents to.
If you smoke, stop.
Unless you have WHOLE LIFE (not term) insurance in place, and are planning on becoming a military retiree, then DO NOT get a prescription for Chantix. It will show up on a MIB for 10 years, and you will pay a substantially higher insurance rate than a non-smoker.
The price of Chantix is equivalent to one pack of cigarettes per day, per month. So about $150, (they figure if you can afford a pack of cigarettes and you want to quit, then you can afford the prescription) Pretty simple pricing scheme.
TriCare for Live is perhaps the best thing a retiree has going for them, other than the retirement itself.
If you think I'm joking, try this on for size. Don't feel like taking care of yourself? Worked your way into diabetes by eating wrong and not excercising? Diabetic drugs average $900 per month. TriCare Covers those drugs.
With TriCare you don't hit the "donut hole". (that's where your supplement -that you signup for at 65- puts a limit on the cost of your meds. You pay a co-pay of say $30 a month on a drug that costs $300...until you reach a predetermined annual threshold..then you PAY FULL PRICE for your medications until Jan 1 of the following year.) Scared yet?
Wellbutrin? It's an anti-depressant. Oh yeah, get diagnosed with depression without being retired military and see if ANY insurance company will pick you up. TriCare for Life is really really really good, if not the best insurance I've run across. And I see about 20 different policies per day from all walks of life.
The only thing TriCare doesn't offer is a Long Term Care, Home Health Care, or Short Term Care plan. If you don't have one, and have to goto a nursing home towards the end of your life, you will pay all of your money, all of your assets, and everything you've worked for to that nursing home & the state. Or you could goto the VA that has an opening...might not be anywhere remotely close to where your family lives...and finish up there. But there is a site for federal employees that offers really resonable rates. Google it. It has the name FED in the title, can't think of it off hand. Then compare that to all the Bankers Life, AllStates, etc plans out there.