During a routine trip to the pharmacy, Laura Lathrop, an academic advisor for civil engineering, discovered that her estrogen patch was now 200% the cost it usually was.<\/p>\n
In January, Purdue changed its pharmacy benefit manager from CVS Caremark to AffirmedRx. With the switch have come major changes in the list of prescriptions covered by insurance from preventative to non-preventative. The lists have rolled out in quarterly stages throughout the year.<\/p>\n
Over 700 medicines ranging from anti-depressants and Botox injections to asthma inhalers and insulin pumps have been moved to the non-preventative list since the switch to AffirmedRx. Many employees, like Lathrop, didn\u2019t realize they were affected until they saw a receipt or until they received a notice in the mail telling them their medication was being moved in the next quarterly roll-out.<\/p>\n
AffirmedRx CEO Greg Baker, a Purdue alumni, gave Purdue $20 million to the College of Pharmacy on Purdue Day of Giving 2025.<\/p>\n
Lathrop, who has six kids, has had to learn how to juggle paying for rising medication costs for her whole family.<\/p>\n
Lathrop wears an estrogen patch to prevent premenopause and uses the weight loss drug Zepbound. Zepbound will cost her $1,000 per month starting in January, which is 4,000% of what it used to be, she said.<\/p>\n
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This graph shows the changes in price for several medications after switching to AffirmedRx.<\/p>\n
Sawyer Rebennack | Graphics Editor<\/p>\n
\u201cMy medications are for conditions that aren\u2019t life-threatening, but they\u2019re preventing issues that could arise. They\u2019re literally the definition of preventative medications,\u201d Lathrop said.<\/p>\n
Lathrop said she doesn\u2019t know how she is going to manage paying for more expensive medication and medical costs for the rest of the family.<\/p>\n
Diabetes changes<\/p>\n
Sean McKee, the assistant director of recruitment in the College of Engineering, has had to go from paying a $50 co-pay to paying $1,000 a month for medicines he needs for his type 1 diabetes.<\/p>\n
McKee explained that to properly manage his diabetes, he has to plan out when he wakes up, what he eats, and when he exercises. This can be hard, especially because he travels in Indiana to recruit for the College of Engineering, but he said he has technology that helps him manage his diabetes.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Sean McKee shows his Loop app, which he had to code himself to track his insulin. He has been affected by the changes with AffirmedRx because his diabetes medication has been changed to the non-preventative list.<\/p>\n
Olivia Mapes | Editor-in-Chief<\/p>\n
He uses an insulin pump called Dexcom Omnipod 5 which tracks his blood sugar levels and connects to an integrated app he had to code himself on his phone called Loop. If his levels are on the rise, the pump automatically administers insulin, and if it finds that it is too high, it will cut his insulin off.<\/p>\n
\u201cI make a lot of additional choices during the day. There\u2019s a lot of things to think about with diabetes,\u201d McKee said. \u201cThere\u2019s like 180 additional choices that people with diabetes have to make on any given day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Without proper treatment, diabetes can lead to many complications including neuropathy, vision loss, kidney function, and teeth issues, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe diabetes stuff is being moved to a non-preventative list, like all my insulin pumps, my sensor insulin \u2026 but it quite literally prevents me from dying. All these things are working together to prevent me from dying and (having) complications,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
McKee was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in second grade and had to prick his finger multiple times a day for years to manage it. Eventually, he found the system he uses now, which has kept his hemoglobin in the right levels.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I use is working, and so it makes no sense to essentially force me to use a system that is not so personalized, not as efficient, not as readily accessible, as this system is and this technology is,\u201d McKee said.<\/p>\n
McKee, a native to West Lafayette, was able to move in with his parents to be able to afford his medication but said not everyone is able to fall back on parents, especially when they have kids that depend on them.<\/p>\n
Specialty medicines<\/p>\n
Amy Wagner, the assistant director of student success, has also been affected by the changes with AffirmedRx. She has also had issues with the specialty pharmacy benefits manager, Archimedes, she said.<\/p>\n
Specialty medications are generally prescribed for people with complex or ongoing medical conditions. These high-cost medications generally have unique storage or shipment requirements; additional education and support from health care professionals; and are usually not stocked at retail pharmacies, according to the Archimedes website.<\/p>\n
Wagner has been dealing with searing chronic pain for two decades. After years of experimenting with different pain treatment plans, she found that Botox injections helped with chronic migraines.<\/p>\n
Wagner has trigeminal neuralgia, a nerve disorder that causes intense pain in the face that she described \u201cas if a giant was stabbing her in the face lasting for about 15 seconds.\u201d The stabbing pain happens daily alongside migraine issues.<\/p>\n
Archimedes rejected her doctor\u2019s order for her Botox, meaning she didn\u2019t get her injection in time. The injection takes three weeks to go into full effect where she will be pain free for a month. Keeping on schedule is important to managing her pain, she said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Amy Wagner, the assistant director of student success, gets splitting headaches that she says \u201cfeels like a giant stabbing her face.\u201d Her anti-depressants which she uses to manage nerve pain will be moved to non-preventative next January.<\/p>\n
Olivia Mapes | Editor-in-Chief<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll just have to cut more from my life than I normally do; I don\u2019t have a choice. I love my job and I love Purdue,\u201d Wagner said. \u201cI need these medicines. There\u2019s nothing for me to try to switch to, and it\u2019s taken so long to find them, to find the Botox treatment that I\u2019m not willing to variate from the plans that we\u2019ve been doing since I\u2019ve been working here. It took so long to get this combination to make my life easier.\u201d<\/p>\n
Besides issues with her Botox injections, all anti-depressants will be moved to the non-preventative list starting Jan. 1, 2026 in the last roll out. Wagner takes three different anti-depressants which she currently pays nothing for.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is hard to stomach when you read so much about how the university really cares about the students and wants them to take care of their mental health,\u201d Wagner said. \u201cIt just feels a little hypocritical to take those drug benefits away from faculty and staff \u2014 from people pursuing their mental health issues, trying to make it better.\u201d<\/p>\n
Purdue and AffirmedRx benefits<\/p>\n
McKee, who has now started a petition against the insurance change, has reached out to human resources several times and said he gets the same response each time.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is the University\u2019s goal to continue to provide benefits that are affordable. However, health care costs continue to rise nationwide, and Indiana continues to have higher rates of chronic health issues that drive up healthcare costs,\u201d read an email from Purdue HR sent to McKee.<\/p>\n
The email went on to recommend him to compare pricing among different pharmacies and look into different medications.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you understand how medication works? Because everyone\u2019s body is different. You can\u2019t just sub something out. It\u2019s not a list of ingredients for, you know, brownies. Like I can use Aldi milk instead of Payless milk,\u201d Lathrop said. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of extensive genetic workup and trial and error that goes into choosing which medications are right for which person.\u201d<\/p>\n
Purdue did give employees $1,000 to help cover the pharmacy switch. Some employees have also received various raises.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe understand that healthcare decisions are deeply personal, and navigating coverage changes can be complex during transitions. To help employees manage the transition for 2025, the University shouldered 95% of the overall increase in health care costs, phased in the prescription changes throughout the year, and provided an additional $1,000 in health savings accounts for those employees who were impacted,\u201d said Deputy Spokesperson Trevor Peters in an email.<\/p>\n
Wagner said she appreciates the raises and understands Purdue is managing rising costs of everything but said the raises have not kept pace with inflation.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Sean McKee, who now pays over double what he paid before the insurance changes, protested outside of the Healthy Boiler Fair. He has also started a petition and reached out to human resources and the Management and Professional Staff Advisory Committee.<\/p>\n
Olivia Mapes | Editor-in-Chief<\/p>\n
McKee got a 2.5% raise, which calculated out to getting $90 extra per month, he said. Still, it doesn\u2019t come close to covering his rising health care costs.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s very difficult to make ends meet and continue to make ends meet without an increase in wages. Now there will be this pharmacy issue for the drugs that you need, and you\u2019ll have to figure that out too,\u201d Wagner said. \u201cIt\u2019s really stretching people thin.\u201d<\/p>\n
The main benefit for switching to AffirmedRx is access to online pharmacies such as Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Co. and Amazon Pharmacy, HR emails said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese pharmacies will allow members more access to low-cost medications and the amount you pay will apply to your health plan,\u201d according to a Frequently Asked Questions page covering the switch from CVS Caremark to AffirmedRx.<\/p>\n
Lathrop said she already had access to online pharmacies before the switch.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s like you\u2019re being gaslit by your own employer,\u201d Wagner said. \u201cNo, it\u2019s actually not, it\u2019s definitely more expensive.\u201d<\/p>\n
For some employees, the insurance changes have made them look into backup plans.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith this type of situation, it makes it difficult to imagine that staying at Purdue long-term is going to be sustainable for a lot of people, especially people who have these really life-threatening conditions,\u201d Lathrop said.<\/p>\n