I note on the Abbott website that a sentence has been added that the Freestyle Libre is available at participating Pharmacies. It further lists many big name sources, such as Walgreen’s, CVS, Walmart, etc.
If I go to those websites, I don’t see the Freestyle listed, but perhaps this is new enough that web pages aren’t updated?
UPDATE: I contacted my local Walgreen pharmacy. And while they don’t have this item in stock, they can order it from their warehouse. In the past, this has taken just a day or two to get such items. I also asked about price and was told the reader kit was $70 and the sensor kit was $36. That seems really low for the sensor, but even if that was incorrect info, I suspect the price would not be over the $70 charged for the reader.
I got an email Monday night saying it was available, but requires a great doctor prescription to get it.
Is this correct? Must have a prescription to buy it?
Sensors are apparently $45 per sensor. US has approved them for ten days of wear. The initial kit may be $80 or so. Abbott was not clear on the phone about the pricing, but it looks like a lot of people have no insurance coverage for this product.My Kroger pharmacy which was on thie list, had not yet even heard of the Libre. I definitely do not think one box of 30 days supply of sensors, is going to be $36. no way…
I was not suggesting a month’s supply would be $36. I believe that could be the price for one sensor though. The pharmacy obviously had not dealt with a request like this and was reading off their warehouse screen.
I think you’re right about this new availability. Last I read was that it would be available in the US by the end of 2017. When the Libre was introduced in Europe there was much more demand than supply. This created some long wait times. Maybe Abbott wanted to do a “soft introduction” in the US to help mitigate delays. Here’s a screen-shot of the Abbott Libre website:
diaTribe noted in an October 3, 2017 column these important differences between the US system and the one currently being used in Europe:
It only makes sense to me that more info leads to better, more timely treatment decisions, and better diabetes health. I would not like the 12-hour warm up period. During this time there is no data visible to the wearer. I would definitely try to use the workarounds raised in the diaTribe article to offset this. Good luck to all who will be helped by this newly available tool. Please report your experiences!
12 hour warm up?? Whoa! that’s not too cool. Remember the Navigator? One of the raps against it was the overly-long warmup length. It was 10 hours. I get antsy waiting for my 2 hour warm up of the G5.
Apparently for a one-time extra expense of about $70, you can have a second reader and start the next sensor during the last 12 hours of the previous one.
i heard a commercial yesterday for this product. i had no idea that it was available in the usa! it has me curious but at that price not so much it seems
Is the 12 hour wait period a function of the sensor or of the reader? There is an aftermarket device the will allow the Freestyle to display on a mobile device, it mounts over the sensor and transmits to your phone continuously. Would the 12 hour wait still apply when using it without a reader.
I understand that Abbott is working on Medicare reimbursement, but hasn’t worked that out yet. I think eventually it will be approved for other insurance as well. It is a replacement for routine fingersticks and doesn’t require calibration.
I read somewhere that the aftermarket device reads independently of the Freestyle reader and may give readings during the 12 hour wait. In Europe and the rest of the world, the warm-up is one hour, so the info is probably there.
I received the email from Abbott Monday night, too. So when I was in WalMart yesterday, I checked at their pharmacy about price. Unfortunately, the Libre wasn’t even shown on their computer data base yet, so couldn’t get that. And, of course, they had no idea how soon they’d actually have it in stock.
I don’t have an appointment with my endo until May, but once I find out the price, I may just have Abbott send the request for a prescription to my endo sooner. I don’t think I could afford paying out of pocket full time, but maybe one ten-day period of month. My fingers need a break!
I was just hoping that’s not what they have told you! :-). My CDE sent a prescription to my Kroger store, but the guy had never heard of the Libre at all. I will let them run the RX to see where it ends up. I have seen $40 to 45 per sensor and some varying prices on the starter kit (around $80?). I wanted it for trending information, not so I could consider it finger stick free testing. Lots of folks putting it down because it does not alarm, but some trending info would help me out compared to none!
Hey, if you are obliquely referring to my early postings, of COURSE I’d “put it down” specially for it’s lack of safety (no alarms) for T1’s who are especially vulnerable to low bg’s while asleep. I never said it’s a worthless product, but that for a certain class of user, “yes” it’s not all that wonderful. Heck, even the notoriously inaccurate Enlites I wore were next to useless. False lows when reclined, inaudible alarms…at least the Dexcom is both accurate and has far louder alarms. I don’t need (as a T1) more trending info–I need accurate, 24/7 readings with warnings that I’m getting low, or getting to high, so that I can correct either.
My DIL’s step-dad died in his sleep. Cause? Yep–extreme low bg. It happens.
No, it was not directed at you Dave. It was however, directed at people who see no need for it. I think the advertising is misleading, it really isnt going to replace fingersticks. I also think the launch is not being handled well. However, for various reason I cannot afford a DEX and my CDE and I thought it would be wonderful to have an idea which direction things are going, like before bedtime etc. I have a friend on another site who lost her sister to a Medtronic problem. She needs her dex because of that fear, plus being unaware of lows. Even she sees why I might like this new system…We don’t all require the same things and we surely cannot all afford the same things either. But I was not referring to you, just people on Facebook.
ah. fair enough! I definitely see a good use case for the Libre. Just not, as I explained previously, for those in my similar medical situation. It would be great for those wanting trends and not having to keep pricking their fingers umpteen times a day (like me, prior to getting a CGM that actually works). It’s a wonder I have any fingertips left, after all these years of checking more than a dozen times a day. Started testing (prior to me buying a meter) around '79 or '80. Got a meter (for better accuracy than color comparisons) in 92. Always have tested a lot so '80 to 2017 is 37 years. Figure 15 x 37 x 365. That’s over 200,000 tests. But guess what, I almost never get sore fingertips. No infections. "lucky"me, eh?
I’ve been using it for ~2 months as it’s more affordable than the Dexcom for me. As good as Dexcom is, I was sick of the alarms, calibrating, and not being able to get a sensor to last much beyond a week. It’s accurate enough that I don’t need to finger test. I do once in a while, but usually it’s spot on or close enough. It’s a shame they put so many restrictions on the American version, I love the 1-hr warm-up and that theoretically the sensors last 2 weeks without needing to go through another warm up period. I do start getting sensor errors as I get closer to 14 days however, so it isn’t perfect.
I did the urine thing too. so useless. I could be hypo, but spilling glucose at the time of testing urine. Useless, except for when I was in my honeymoon phase, never spilled, then after roughly a month I started getting the dreaded dark green results. Back to the doc, to go on more insulin. Never had a day off insulin since. That would have been in early 1979.
Scott, tis a shame you didn’t get the kind of accuracy I’ve been seeing with my G5. Often, it’s within 2 points. When it isn’t, it’s usually going to be very close to the meter, if I just wait 15 minutes or so and take another peak at the receiver. This morning I woke up around 6AM and it was within one point of my meter, a reading higher than I like, but it was accurate.
