Wellbutrin Program Discontinued At Direct Success Pharmacy
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I've been getting name brand Wellbutrin XL 300 from Direct Success Pharmacy for several years, but I just found out yesterday that the cash program is no longer available as of October 31, 2016. So, I will be forced to switch to the generics again. I have had side effects from three of the generics on the market. I've tried Actavis, Mylan and Par. The best of the worst was probably Actavis so I guess I will try it again. Any advice? I am not eligible for any of the other patient assistance programs for the name brand drug.

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Re: suzie (# 53)

Hi Suzie, I wound up taking the scripts to Walmart, and they were kind enough to work with my dr to get the insurance to approve it as a Tier 3 drug. So now I pay $35 for a 30 day supply of either strength; so in my case, I take both 150 and 300, so for the 2 it costs me $70 per month. It's not as great as $10/month, but I'll take it over the thousands of dollars it would have cost. Hope this helps, good luck to you!

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Re: Cindy (# 45)

I’m in the same situation. I’m so desperate I’m thinking about trying to fill it in Nevada or Oregon but don’t think it’ll work.
What did you end up doing if you don’t mind me asking.

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Re: Margo (# 51)

I never had to register or provide any personal information. I just had to check a few boxes and that was it. Perhaps there are different things you need to do depending on what boxes you check.

To compare apples to apples, this is how I filled out the form:

I checked NO for this one: "Are you eligible for reimbursement of prescriptions (in whole or in part) under any federal, state or other governmental programs, including, but not limited to, Medicare (including Medicare Advantage and Part A, B and D plans), Medicaid, TRICARE, Veterans Administration or Department of Defense health coverage, CHAMPUS, the Puerto Rico Government Health Insurance Plan or any other federal or state healthcare programs?"

I checked NO for this one: "Do you live in Massachusetts and/or have insurance coverage for prescriptions in Massachusetts?"

I checked this option: "I am 18 or older."

I checked this option: "Check here if you do not wish to receive periodic information from Valeant Pharmaceuticals North America LLC regarding future product and patient offerings."

Then I scrolled down and checked this: "By clicking here I confirm I am not enrolled in Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, or any other federal or state government healthcare or pharmaceutical assistance program providing prescription drug benefits, that I am eligible to participate in this program, and agree to the Terms and Conditions specified above."

Then I clicked "Next".

Then I was taken to a page with an image of the coupon card that had all the necessary numbers on it, and from there it was just a matter of printing out the page and bringing it to my pharmacy, where they looked at the numbers on the card and typed whatever ones they needed into their system.

In other words, you don't actually get a physical card, just an image of a card on a web page.

And technically, instead of printing the web page, I saved it as a PDF and emailed it to myself, so at the pharmacy I just pulled up the email on my phone instead of giving them a printout.

Hope this helps!

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Re: Dave (# 43)

Hi - How did you get it to work? When I sign up, it says it must be registered first. I go to Register it online and then by phone..It states has already been used. I tried it with another card; still the same thing..

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Re: Dave (# 49)

Hi - How did you get it to work? When I sign up, it says it must be registered first. I go to Register it online and then by phone..It states has already been used. I tried it with another card; still the same thing..

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Re: JJW (# 48)

Definitely download the savings card [see post # 43].

Depending on your situation, your cost for the brand could be as low as $5 for a 30-day supply. The card worked for me when I got my first 90-day fill of the year a few weeks ago at Target/CVS.

Valeant started offering this card in 2017 after discontinuing the program with Direct Success, and they renewed the program in 2018, so the current card should be good at least until January, when presumably (hopefully) they'll renew the program again for 2019.

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Looking for program like direct success discount on brand name wellbutrin xl or sr. The generic is not the same. No way at all to afford the brand name. Anyone suggestions would be appreciated...thanks

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Re: Crosbysmon (# 46)

I was on the generic version for a few years, and they seemed to be okay. However, I was noticing that depending on the "brand" of generics, either my depression would come back, or I would have a lot of stomach issues (blood in my stool at one point), headaches, nausea. I have tried Anchen, PAR, Global Pharmacy, another one that I can't think of the name right now. Once I found Direct Success and started back on the brand name Wellbutrin, I was back to feeling like myself again. I'm not about to try that again... I know it's around a 4 hour drive to Las Vegas, maybe Arizona is closer. I have around 30 days left of my existing supply, so at least I found this out with enough time to spare.

My doctor is supposedly calling the CVS, as they do have limited exceptions (according to my internet search on the law) so my fingers are crossed... Thanks for your reply!

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Re: Cindy (# 45)

There are several generics that work for a lot of people. I have tried three of them for a few months at a time. I even tried the “best” of the three a second time for several months. They either didn’t work well for me or they had bad side effects. If you try one, just be patient. I read where people on those boards only give them a few days.

Are you able to cross into another state to fill a 90 day prescription? It may be worth trying. And I don’t know if the savings card will allow 90 day refills.

There is another discussion board on this site that has a lot more info. The topic is, “What Is The Best Generic Version Of Wellbutrin Xl - Watson or Anchen?” I have learned so much from that discussion. It’s been going on for years, and Watson is no longer available. I don’t think Anchen is either but comments are current.

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I have the $5 savings card, and they told me that it would still be valid in 2018. However, I just found out at CVS that California passed some law that forbids use of coupons for brand name medications if there is a generic available! I am livid! Been searching online to try to find a solution; I take 450mg/day, so paying for the brand name would be around $3500/month!!

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I'be been using the savings program for almost a year. I'm on a high dose of 450 mg so I have to get 2 prescriptions - 1 for 300 and the second for 150. I've just exceeded the 12 refills and not sure what to do at this point. Is there a way around this? I re-enrolled in the savings card, but I dont know if that will work once they apply it to my pharmacy account and see that I've already maxed out on a previous card.

Anyone have to deal with this? What did you do?

Thank you for the help

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Re: HankChinaski (# 42)

The coupon card at wellbutrinxl.com/savings is evidently active for 2018.

The fine print in the PDF when you download the card has not been updated yet and still says "This offer and coupon expire on 12/31/17" but I just called the customer service line about this (1-855-859-2966) and the rep said that the group number on the new card I just downloaded is valid for 2018.

I can confirm that the group number on the new card is different than my old 2017 card.

I won't know for sure though if it really works for another month or so, because I timed a 3-month refill in December in case the 2018 coupon wasn't offered right away, so it's still too early for me to submit a refill request.

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Re: Dave (# 41)

Hey all, has anyone figured out what is happening for 2018? Also, just to share, my last two refills jumped from $5 to almost $50. When I called about it, Valeant's program rep said it was because they cover a max price per pill so the increase in price was the difference between the max price and an increased price. I suppose I could have looked for a different pharmacy to see if there was a difference elsewhere (I use the local Target CVS), but I figured I'd been paying $5 all year, so the $50 didn't feel like a crazy amount to pay for my last two refills. The rep couldn't tell me what 2018 would look like. I called back in November --does anyone have more up to date information to share?

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See Sammy Joe's updated post #34 below. They've summed it up very well.

Sounds like people tend to have better luck calling Valeant about the coupon instead of using the online form.

Best of luck!

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Hi Dave. I know this is a few months later. I called them to find out about the coupon you mentioned in one of your posts. They claim it's for $200 of savings off the co-pay that I would generally pay and it's the same savings program that they show on their wellbutrinxl.com/savings.

Is this the one you tried? I saw that you wrote that it's a different coupon but it seems to have the same savings information.

Thank you for the help.

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I just tried the new coupon, and it worked for me. $15 for a 90-day supply!

It wasn't completely without a hitch though. First Target/CSV mistakenly entered the Rx in the system without the "brand only" designation, so they wound up filling the generic at first. Then when they tried to rerun the brand through the insurance (CareFirst), it came back as over $4,000, again because the Rx was entered without the "brand only" box checked. Once they verified that the doc had written it as "brand only" and checked that box, it came back as $15.

P.S. Sorry for the delayed response on this. I've been working my way through a 90-day supply from Canada, so I haven't needed to refill until now.

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I too cannot take generic as it makes me feel worse actually. Teva is the worst but my experience with Watson brand became negative as well. Generics are usually NOT equal to their brand equivalent, in spite of what they try to tell you. The rate of release is usually different. I think it is a CRIME that mental health medications are priced so exhorbitantly!! Really, the people with suicidal ideations are the ones who have to suffer?!!!!

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Does anyone have an update on whether the Valeant coupon mentioned above -$100 for 30 days of Wellbutrin XL- actually works? What if you have private insurance that doesn't cover the brand name?

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I just did the same thing - calling Valeant and telling them about the discontinuation of the Direct Success program. They will mail me my $100 copay coupon in 5-7 days. It is NOT the same coupon as online - the representative emphasized this!
This is GREAT news and beats spending $1,300 monthly. I am speechless. I have been forced to take the generic, which I am not loving, so I also ordered the brand name from Canada. So I was going to switch to the Canadian version...but would much rather stick with the U.S. made version that I have been taking for years. The coupon is good for 12 refills.

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I used it too. I paid 5.00 for a 30 day supply. I actually filled it at Direct Success again for 5.00. Since they had my prescription, it was just easier to fill there. My commercial insurance is BC/BS.

Here's an interesting twist though. I think I like the Actavis version better! After all of the talk and trials of different generics, I have concluded that I am going to continue on Actavis' XL 300. I noticed some additional side effects while on the brand drug that I don't seem to have with Actavis.

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