Vancouver Woman Mad Fr B.C. Not Covering Her Meds? ๐๐
Vancouver woman with MS asks why B.C.โs the only province that doesnโt cover her medication. OK, so, this woman in Vancouver is big mad because B.C. is the ONLY province in Canada that won't cover her MS meds, Kesimpta. It's like, $26k a year! She can't take the other stuff 'cause of her diabetes. M
TL:DR
OK, so, this woman in Vancouver is big mad because B.C. is the ONLY province in Canada that won't cover her MS meds, Kesimpta. It's like, $26k a year! She can't take the other stuff 'cause of her diabetes. MS Canada's pressed too, saying it'd save the province money in the long run. The Ministry of Health is saying they tried to negotiate, but it didn't vibe. Now she's running out of meds and might have to dip out of B.C. fr.
The Tea is Piping Hot!
Aight, so listen up, fam. There's this woman in Vancouver, Teresa Alfeld, who's dealing with MS, and she's calling out the B.C. government. Why? Because B.C. is straight-up ghosting her when it comes to covering the cost of Kesimpta, a medication that could actually help her out. Apparently, it stops lesions from progressing with 99% efficacy.
Here's the sitch: Kesimpta is an injectable med you gotta get every month, and it costs, like, $26,000 a year. No cap, B.C. is the only province in the whole of Canada that doesn't cover it. Alfeld's got relapsing-remitting MS, diagnosed back in September 2024, and to make matters even more complicated, she's also got Type 1 diabetes, so she can't even take the usual steroid meds they give out for MS.
She managed to snag six doses of Kesimpta from the manufacturer, which is clutch, but now she's running on empty. Both her private insurance and PharmaCare said "nah" to covering it. Like, seriously? MS Canada is on her side, though, and they've been hitting up the B.C. government, trying to convince them that covering Kesimpta would save money down the line 'cause it's so effective.
But the Ministry of Health is playing hardball. They said they tried to negotiate the price with the manufacturer but couldn't agree on whether it was worth it. They're suggesting other treatments covered by PharmaCare, but those are a no-go for Alfeld 'cause of her diabetes. To add insult to injury, the alternate treatments have a sus 50% efficacy rate, according to Alfeld, while Kesimpta is sitting pretty at 99%.
Alfeld's initial doses of Kesimpta are finito, and she's due for another shot on June 30th. She's currently linking up with her MLA and sending petitions left and right to PharmaCare and the Health Ministry, hoping they'll finally come through. Even the author says that the high cost of MS meds is forcing her to leave BC. This is wild, and we gotta keep our eyes peeled to see how this all plays out, frfr.
Abbreviations Glossary
| Abbreviation | Full Form |
|---|---|
| Mad Fr | Mad For |
| OK | It has no real meaning, like alright. |
| Tea | Gossip or interesting information. |
| Piping Hot | Super Fresh Gossip |
| Big Mad | Very Angry |
| Meds | Medication |
| Sus | Suspicious |
| Dipping Out | Leaving |
| Fr | For real |
| Aight | Alright |
| Fam | Friend |
| Calling out | Opposing |
| Straight-up ghosting | Ignoring |
| No cap | No lie |
| Clutch | Useful, helpful |
| Nah | No |
| Hitting Up | Trying to contact |
| Playing Hardball | Being Strict |
| No-go | Not Accepted |
| Finito | Finished, Complete |
| Linking Up | Meeting with someone |
| Peeped | Seen, Watched |
| Frfr | For real for real |