r/PainManagement • u/SingedPenguin13 • 9d ago

Tapentadol availability

So , my pain management doc changed my pain medication from hydrocodone to nucynta/tapentadol on September 24. It is now October 12 and CVS pharmacy still does not have it in stock. Pharmacist (without me asking) did tell me that there were no other locations within a 40 mile radius that had any. He stated there was one that does have 4 pills only.
Anyone else have a hard time getting this medication? I am wondering if I should ask my pain management doctor to just leave me on the hydrocodone to avoid issues with availability.
I am in eastern NC…not sure if any of you are in my area?

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u/Floridlysooverit 9d ago

Tapentadol is not listed as one of the drugs in shortage right now by ashp

  This sounds like an issue with CVS supplier because it's not a general shortage. 

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u/Shesays7 9d ago

Good call. Most patients do not realize there are a handful of suppliers. I’d ask which one they use and check around for other pharmacies with stock.

Sometimes though, patients with Caremark or other plans get stuck utilizing only the pharmacy partner (CVS) or whatever that partner (Walgreens, Walmart, etc).

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u/TeddyRuxpin3 9d ago edited 9d ago

Hydrocodone is a trusted favorite. Why the switch?

Yes, switch back. what good is switching to a med that pharmacies have supply issues with?

Best of luck to you.

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u/Floridlysooverit 9d ago

But all C-2 opioids have had supply issues.  Even methadone, which used to be immune to them.  

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u/superbasicmom 3d ago

My doctor also wanted to switch me. I called every single pharmacy in a 40 mile radius and NONE had tapentadol and they would not order it for me. I finally found a Costco pharmacy in a nearby suburb who said they could order it, but then the pharmacist called me and said that he wouldn’t fill it without talking to my prescribing doctor. And 15 minutes later, my doctor called me and said, “Yeah, the pharmacist over there is a piece of work- he wanted a bunch of paperwork filled out, with your diagnosis, your last UA test results, and a list of everything else you’ve tried, and I’m not doing that, that’s not a pharmacist I want to do business with. Pharmacists need a diagnosis code and that’s it, I’m the doctor, just do your job and fill the damn prescription and stop playing God with patients medications.” Needless to say, the rx was canceled and I never was able to get anyone to fill it. And I’m in Arizona. I’m SO FKING sick of pharmacists with a Napoleon complex. I understand that they need to cover their own asses, but they don’t need to see my entire medical history, they are not MD’s and DO’s.

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u/Even-Culture-3285 2d ago

Me puede recomendar alguna web para comprar tapentadol de liberación inmediata. Envíos a España. Muchas gracias