Dear all - This morning I read in the daily newspaper that about 40 drug makers have been offering free drugs in this country (USA) to people who do not have insurance or Medicaid, and who simply cannot afford medicines that cost a great deal of money. However, the drug companies do not advertise that they do this.

To let people know that they might get drugs free, a retired real estate agent and his wife set up a Web site "to spread the word and guide applicants through what can be a tangle of red tape. Each company has its own criteria for participants and its own list of drugs that are included in the programs." Now Mr. and Mrs. Hogg have 12 employees.

Last month, 6,200 people applied for help. The idea is spreading. A physician who is also a Republican lawmaker, Ron Paul, gives workshops for senior citizens in southeast Texas on how to ask for private assistance from the drug companies, and helped five people apply through their doctors to the various companies. They found assistance for one person with drug costs of $2,200 a month, for a young person whose prescription cost $800 and for a senior citizen who had a monthly income of only $462. For information on free prescription programs, go to the Partnership for Prescription Assistance or The Medicine Program.

Ellen McCrady, August 2000