Two Mid-South doctors are fighting to ensure that stroke patients continue to get access to medications they need to stay alive.
The issue is insurance companies such as CVS Caremark are offering alternative medications that the two doctors say are not as effective and could be dangerous.
The drug being denied to some patients is called Eliquis.
“We found this in Memphis, but I think it is a national issue,” Dr. Andrei Alexandrov, a stroke neurologist and the chairman of neurology at the UT Health Science Center, said.
It’s an issue that could severely impact the outcome of stroke patients.
“We will have a lot more folks going to the hospital with bleeding and that’s already happened on my watch with folks in Memphis,” Dr. Alexandrov said.
Dr. Alexandrov recently found out that Eliquis, a medication used to prevent blood clots and stroke, is no longer covered for patients with CVS Caremark prescription insurance.