PORT ORANGE, Fla. – Medications used for diabetes are tough to find.
“It’s nuts. It’s getting way out of hand. I’m a United States Army veteran. I put myself on the line for the freedoms of this country. We need to wake up and get serious,” said Rich Malfitano, who’s living with diabetes in Port Orange.
It’s a nightmare many living with diabetes never want to experience.
“It’s been about 6-7 weeks since I haven’t had my shot. I take a shot once a week,” said Rich Malfitano.
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Malfitano said his Trulicity meditation is on backorder with no end in sight.
“You can see the tremor in my hand and hear it in my voice. When your sugar is not stabilized that’s what happens,” said Malfitano.
The disabled veteran says his doctor recommended another medication but he can’t afford it living on a fixed income.
“When I went to the pharmacist it was like $197.98. That’s way too expensive,” said Malfitano.
Nationwide shortages of Trulicity, Ozempic and other diabetic drugs have been going on for months due to several factors, including people using the drugs for weight loss.
It’s why Dr. Renee Dua with Johns Hopkins Hospital designed Together By Renee to help out.
“The nice thing about the ‘find my meds’ feature is it’s totally free. It’s all AI on the backend where we are able to call pharmacies in your neighborhood in a certain radius you decide and find medication for you,” said Dua.
The app is helping thousands of users.
“In over 95% of cases it takes a day or two but we’re able to find their medications in a day or two,” said Dua.
Dr. Dua said some pharmacies get medications quicker than others. She said there’s no telling when the shortages will end so it’s important to utilize your doctors and everything you can to help find your medications.
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