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Freestyle libre pharmacy trouble

Have you been able to get the freestyle libre sensors on Perscription

  • Total voters
    31
Spookie13

Spookie13

Newbie
Hi all

I want to get some info from people, I have been using the freestyle libre system for well over a year and have had positive results throughout and finally got my HBA1C down to 6.3.

I thought it was great when I heard that they would be available on the NHS from 1st November, but now come the headaches. After finally persuading my dr. to prescribe me the sensors, I've now hit a problem where Lloyds pharmacy suppliers. AH pharmasuticles can't supply the sensors.

Has anyone else run in to these problems, and what was the outcome?
Thanks

Rob
 
Abbott will only supply direct, not through a wholesaler. So the pharmacy has to open an account with Abbott Online and takes less than 48 hours. Probably easier with a small independent.

HTH
 
@Spookie13 You'll probably be the first person in the country to get Libre sensors on prescription. As far as I am aware at the moment, none of the CCGs (funding bodies) have agreed to pay for them, so even if your doctor gets the prescription for you, the pharmacist currently can't get paid for the provision of them.
 
My current order is on a 2 weeks hiatus since they have run out due to an unprecedented demand. I think supply will be difficult no matter who you get them from.
 
Well this is a very strange occurrence. Just been to pick up my Perscription from the chemist and to my surprise in my order was 1 Abbott freestyle libre sensor (I did ask for 4 though)

Apparently Lloyd's pharmacy now has an account with Abbot healthcare and have a stock of sensors.

Hope this helps you all
 
I also have tried to get this on prescription and have been told there is no chance where I live. Sorry, last random post so I can post a link.
 
I don't want mine on prescription. I envisage many problems with doctors and DSN's causing me all manner of problems when they are absolutely terrified by the constant lows my Libre records. In all the clamour to get the Libre on prescription nobody appears too concerned with what will happen to finger prick blood test equipment on prescription. Be careful what you all wish for
 
Diabeticliberty said:
In all the clamour to get the Libre on prescription nobody appears too concerned with what will happen to finger prick blood test equipment on prescription. Be careful what you all wish for
Click to expand...

Good point. There was a thread a while back from a bloke in France, can't find the link, who said their version of the NHS was funding it but strips would be reduced to a mere 100 per year. But it also said the 100 wouldn't apply in cases of clinical need. I've absolutely no idea how libre in nhs will pan out, but if there's any suggestion they try the French route, it would be relatively easy to say that there's a clinical need to meet dvla rules and for calibration. Things might move on as technology develops but pretty much all cgm is regarded as an adjunct to strips at the moment (well, the docs regard it as such, users, not so much, perfectly happy to bolus from it).
 
After being given a trial of the libre system ,which allowed me not to finger prick upto 10 times a day was great,leaving me to check whole blood when I want to drive as the figures given were very close to the scan readings
 
Spookie13 said:
Well this is a very strange occurrence. Just been to pick up my Perscription from the chemist and to my surprise in my order was 1 Abbott freestyle libre sensor (I did ask for 4 though)

Apparently Lloyd's pharmacy now has an account with Abbot healthcare and have a stock of sensors.

Hope this helps you all
Click to expand...
I just passed this info about Lloyds to someone else. He phoned the head office and they say they don't stock them. I think I will phone the local shop tomorrow to see what they say.
 
For me the libre I used for 2 weeks after my hospital granted me one, but I'm not convinced by its accuracy. Several times it reported me as "Low" and I did a blood test which revealed I was at 5.5 sugar ranges. Not low in my book. However it definitely was quick and easy and when I got low readings I would panic and then do blood test and realize it was a false alarm. However where I got confused is that apparently during the night I was dropping to low in the early hours (1am-2am) and suspect that wasn't low but around a 5 mark. So my hospital had me adjust my evening insulin and I'm skeptical of it. Now I'm waking with high sugars which my doctor says is actually normal and part of the early morning hormone produced to get up and go. I'm not convinced by this but it did make me skeptical. I shared this on the Libre facebook page and was ushered away and told to phone customer services, which also surprised me. My area aren't funding the sensors, and I sadly can't afford £120 a month myself in these days as am not on a high salary. So I'm happy to forego this but it seems like a lot of money has been wasted on an empty promise.
 
Spookie13 said:
Hi all

I want to get some info from people, I have been using the freestyle libre system for well over a year and have had positive results throughout and finally got my HBA1C down to 6.3.

I thought it was great when I heard that they would be available on the NHS from 1st November, but now come the headaches. After finally persuading my dr. to prescribe me the sensors, I've now hit a problem where Lloyds pharmacy suppliers. AH pharmasuticles can't supply the sensors.

Has anyone else run in to these problems, and what was the outcome?
Thanks

Rob
Click to expand...

I've been using the Libre for a few months and at my Diabetes review my hba1c is now perfect, I think thanks a lot to the libre. I was on a trial of this last year and previous a pump / CGM that I couldn't get on with due to si\e and having to move it every few days.
My doctor / practice won't fund it for now saying that it is inaccurate.
I've done 50 reading in parallel with finger pricking and it's reliably 1 unit lower each reading over a week period and found it very consistent.
Maybe in the future they will re-look at it. I'm was using about 80 finger prick strips a week, that was causing problems in itself (scarring) and reader error (often using 3 strips to get one reading).
 
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