What Is The Best Generic Version Of Wellbutrin Xl - Watson Or Anchen? (Page 67) (Top voted first)

My doctor will not prescribe generic Wellbutrin XL but my insurance will no longer pay for brand name drugs. I will have to pay about $7000 per yer for what I am taking now (3 of the 150mg Wellbutrin XL brand name per day). I am reading that the problem with the generics is the time release mechanism and not the drug itself and that some are better than others. Anybody have experience with the generics made by Watson and /or Anchen?

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SUSIE-thanks for posting. I’m very sorry brand from Canada isn’t effective for you either. On the other hand-didn’t take you too much time to figure that out. I spent months just “going along”. I’ve nothing more to add here. I’m just going to keep watching to see what anyone can offer going forward. Best wishes to you.

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Re: KM (# 1416)

Where do you get your Rx? Of A102's specifically. I am wondering because this is the only generic Wellbutrin I have found to work well. I was given the mysterious oblong white pill with 142 on one side and I feel like I just cold turkey stopped my meds.

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Re: JM (# 1424)

I get mine at CVS in Target- my pharmacist makes sure when it’s time for a refill to order some in because they don’t stock them. I don’t know why more pharmacies don’t have it stocked, from what I’ve read PAR works better for most people than a lot of other generic brands.

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I’m baaaaaackk. I discontinued Wellbutrin Xl 150 mg(brand by Valeant made in & shipped from Canada) on 7/29 after I found it ineffective & after running through other generics. I’ve been on nothing since 7/29. I am now going to try Sandoz bupropion SR 150 mg. I will update. If that doesn’t work, I will try
Mylan SR 150. If anyone cares to share about either of those, that’d be great. I’m holding my own but did SO MUCH better when I took GSK WELLBUTRIN XL 150. Unfortunately that’s just so over. Best to all still struggling.

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Re: JJ (# 1427)

I ask my Dr for the SR 150 and I am doing great. Once per day 150mg. Doesn't affect my weight so much, but then again she also has me on Topomax for the weight.

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Susie-I am SO glad to hear that! How long have you taken it & which manufacturer?
If it’s working for you don’t forget to have Dr write “fill with......” on your script. My goodness the horror stories when people go along then crash cuz manuf changed by pharmacy.

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I have a coupon card from Valeant that I used at Walgreens. I was getting Wellbutrin XL brand for $5 from February through October. When I went to refill in November the pharmacy said the price was $194. I called Valeant and they told me the problem was the coupon card and that they had received calls from others with the same issue. They said I should go to their website and print out and activate a new card. I tried that and the cost remained at $194. The pharmacist called the number on the card and they told her something about the card only covering a certain dollar amount per pill and because of a price increase my price was now the $194/mo. instead of $5/mo. Has anybody else experienced this problem and if so how did you resolve it or what were you told? Additionally, if something changed and I do have to pay the $194 because of the per pill price limit is there a maximum refill charge? The card always said you could pay as little as $5 and I thought it also indicated somewhere (maybe on this thread) that there was a maximum price of $200 per refill. I should add that you have to have insurance to get into this program. My insurance company told me that nothing changed on their end. Does anyone know the specifics of the pricing and changes made to this Valeant coupon card program?

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Re: MS chick (# 1403)

can you please share your spreadsheet, by either uploading and providing a link to googledrive for us to access it or sending it to my name at the g?

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Re: Bhutana (# 1434)

I am so sorry to hear that. My Dr & I came up with the idea that if I take brand name Wellbutrin IR twice per day (less than $100 with an RX savings card...since I have no insurance) it would be better than worrying about the XL which is so damn expensive at $1400. The IR works perfectly well & it was the best idea cause the SR is $400... less if you have insurance.

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Taking Wellbutrin XL 150 for an upset stomach. What would be the pill closest to Wellbutrin that would help to stop smoking & also help with depression?

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Re: Bhutana (# 1434)

I am also in California and just discovered this! I am beyond furious, as I cannot, and will not, take generic buproprion! And I can't afford the approx $3500/month for the 150 and 300's that I take! I put in a call to my doctor to find out if there is anything she can do. If anyone has any solutions (Canadian pharmacy, maybe?) please oh please share!

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I have also been prescribed generic Wellbutrin XL and have been prescribed Anchen generic bupropion. There have been refills that were ineffective, just like taking none at all. Web searches on medical reviews indicated problems with Wellbutrin XL from multiple generic manufacturers. I read that Mylan makes a generic, and my pharmacy Rite Aide could not supply it, but CVS could. It must be specified on the script that only Mylan will be accepted. Be aware that twice by carelessness the pharmacy has given me Anchen A102's...without even reading full instructions. Yes the Mylan M B9 is generic but the preferred Anchen is what they prefer to prescribe. They can and have special ordered it. My cost is higher than the Anchen, but way less than non-generic.

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Re: Susie (# 1415)

I am on 200 mg hcl SR- I, too, went thru a terrible time when my pharmacy switched manufacturers- I was on bupropion by Solco healthcare which was just fine for me, then the pharmacy went to DR REDDY’S and I will tell you it was like taking nothing. I went thru 3 months of hell- and if you google dr reddys they are out of India and there have been issues. I ended up going thru my insurance mail order (express scripts) and I spoke directly to a pharmacist and told them I had to have either Solco, Mylan or Watson as those 3 are the closest for me as it applies to taking Wellbutrin. I was a military spouse where I got actual Wellbutrin and it was worked wonders and then I was no longer a military spouse and the fun began. I will say that as all have mentioned the manufacturer does matter and pharmacists know that- the techs will argue. If you can switch to a mail order like I did that was what finally stopped the issues. If they run out or if they are back ordered they will call me and tell me but the longest I’ve had to wait is 5 days and I am allowed to refill at the 80 day mark for those reasons. Good luck to everyone. I have PTSD and Wellbutrin/bupropion is the only thing that works for me.

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Watson is Actavis and works for me. Anchen is PAR and that works for me also everything else does not work for except brand name. Interestingly a couple years ago Watson had to pull their generic bupropion off the market because of the problems but the Actavis ones (owned by Watson Work well for me)

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So I've spent countless hours reading and researching and decided I should add finally that I've tried a couple.

Was on cipla I 13 150mg bupropion pill for a month and despite horrible reviews I felt no side effects and a little tiny bit more motivation but not enough to get me really out of bed too often or effect my life in a big way. Well actually one weird side effect was it made me really tired right after my dose and I would nap sometimes.

Week 5 this week we upped it to 300mg and that's when it started going really bad on the same cipla pills. After my dose I would literally be knocked out in deep sleep for 3 hours and feel out of it and the other half the day feel very irritated and angry. Made the mistake of drinking as I usually do on the weekend and had crying spells bouts of rage and paranoia and was uncharacteristically rude and verbally abusive.

I felt crazy rage at every sound and everything which was horrible since today was my final in calculus.

So based on that and these forums I researched what generics were available around me and I was stuck with cipla lupin and par which is anchen I guess because they were bought. Went and picked up new 300xl a102 pills from Walmart took a couple hours ago and for one I am not asleep and for two I feel less murderous & insane already. I really thought I was losing it and was scared for myself and others on the cipla dose of 300mg

Praying that par works better & stops making me tired but I have a paradox effect with all drugs I've ever taken so we will see & I will keep you guys updated.

Side note this medication has made my psrioisis had been so bad but maybe that's just linked to the major amount of anxiety this med has been causing.

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I know this is a thread for Wellbutrin but was wondering if anyone can suggest help with Lexapro which I also take. My insurance company no longer covers the brand Lexapro. I have had good results with the brand but will soon be running out. I previously tried a generic from a Canadian pharmacy. The pills were oval shaped, not round and I got headaches. Does anybody either know of a discount program similar to the Wellbutrin or have any suggestions for a Lexapro generic? Any help would be appreciated.

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Re: Mason (# 4)

Brand and generic drugs are far from being identical. I contacted the fda about a generic drug, that made all my symptoms worse. Yes there is a 20% variancefrom brand to generic. The fda representative I contacted told me the medication wasn’t inspected by fda, the findings are reported to the fda by drug manufacturer!!!! I reported my adverse effect in my mood, after changing to Cipla Lamotrigine. It’s important to contact the fda report adverse effects of a drug.

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If anyone is needing to check on specific ingredients in their bupropion or Wellbutrin, I found a source of information for gluten free drugs at glutenfreedrugs.com. They list each manufacturer & give info on gluten, corn starch, potato starch, lactose & soy. Could be very helpful if you’re having tummy troubles or allergies.

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Re: MS chick (# 1410)

Were you ever able to share this spreadsheet? I’d love to see it.

Chuck

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Re: JJ (# 1445)

Where on that page is this list? I can not locate it. Thanks!

Chuck

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