U.S. Haldol Shortage - Plans?

A statement in the April 23, 2019 link implies Mylan is discontinuing Haldol in bottles. I hope that is not true.

1 Like

I always thought haldol was the one drug they’d always make and have because it is so cheap.

The haloperidol shortage was announced in October of 2018.
Mylan has not produced since then. Other company Zydus makes 5 mg and larger that are in short supply.
I was taking 1 mg. Have not been able to obtain haloperidol / Haldol since December 2018.
Due to unavailability my provider switched me to Prolixin / fluphenazine 5 days ago.
Dry eyes may be problem for me on this med.

1 Like

How do you like fluphenazine so far? Its one of the meds I’m considering for the next time I switch.

So far fluphenazine does not feel much different than haloperidol.
I have less hunger. Hoping I lose weight. Eyes are dry. Been taking new med at night.

Yah I’ve heard it is pretty effective though. I would have liked to stay on haldol but it turns out I’m allergic.

According to this FDA website, Mylan has started making the 0.5 mg, 1 mg, and 2 mg tablets, and this information was revised on 6/28/19:
https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/drugshortages/dsp_ActiveIngredientDetails.cfm?AI=Haloperidol%20Tablets&st=c&tab=tabs-1

I just spoke with a Mylan representative, who indicated that the pills may not have gotten to the wholesalers yet, but they should be there soon.

I hope that the information is accurate.

3 Likes

Yay, I can’t wait to start tapering off Haldol. I need the 2mg and smaller dose pills to do it though.

1 Like

Because I could not get Haldol, was switched to Prolixin. Prolixin dried my eyes so I will be switching back to Haldol 1 mg when available.

I made the same switch @robertc, but Prolixin didn’t help at all. Now I’m on Zyprexa.

I intend to try one of the newer medications.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3278183/

I tire of trying to swim against the current of this river.

How will you handle the probable high cost of the newer med?

I feel for people diagnosed with schizophrenia who are unemployed or underemployed. (I’ve been re-diagnosed with schizophrenia, by the way, and I’m still working at a company that has good insurance). The cost of the newer drugs wasn’t the issue for me. The issue is that I think the new drugs, for me, are crap, to put it very mildly. Maybe I’ll find one that works for me.

If someone is having trouble transitioning to newer drugs because of cost, I’m not sure what to do. If the person is desperate, maybe they could get samples or a coupon for newer drugs, and if the new drugs actually make them stable enough, they could seek employment with a company that offers insurance for when the coupons or samples run out. This is just a wild theory for the desperate. :frowning: @shutterbug works. Maybe he has a better idea. Maybe other working people here have a better idea.

For people on ssdi and medicare…

If Humana is available where you live, prescriptions are pretty affordable. $3.65 I think for generics up to 3 months supply and $8 for non generic. Without this coverage, no way could I afford rexulti. All the other plans I looked at had copays as high as $800.

I know Starbucks offers insurance for part time employees, not sure about prescription coverage.

For alot of people with sz/sza it isn’t feasible or healthy to work a full time job. I’m glad there are people who can do it, but for alot of us, even part time is a stretch.

1 Like

In Colorado you can buy in to medicaid and make 450 percent of the federal poverty level. You do have to pay a premium depending on how much you make. You have to be working to get this. Even 10 days not working they cut you off. They see if your eligible for medicaid under different rules. I believe Illinois has something similar. It is possible in my state to get a full time job, and pay almost no copay for expensive drugs. Just a thought.

1 Like

People with Medicare don’t qualify for coupons though. So that’s a problem right there with the newer meds

Anybody get the new pills yet at their pharmacy? I’d like to get a 90 day supply of the 2mg as my prescription is coming up for renewal in a few days. Called a couple pharmacies the other day and they say they don’t have the pills yet.

Called the pharmacy again today, they say the warehouses are expecting to have it early August for 0.5mg 1mg, and 2mg

There is a haldol shortage. I went to the pharmacy and they said they were out of stock. I’m not sure when it’s supposed to get better because there’s so many people on this medication. I had to up my dosage since everywhere was out of my medicine dosage.

My pdoc told me if I couldn’t find my haldol dose, her nurse would order it from some company or pharmacy. They’ve only made me wait, the pharmacy, for 2 days. Because it’s a prn for me, and I knew of a possible shortage, I got it filled asap.

Hope this gets better for you guys, and soon!