The -Step ELIQUIS Starter Kit

Transcription

1 Your ELIQUIS Starter Kit E The -Step ELIQUIS Starter Kit A guide to starting and taking ELIQUIS Please see Important Safety Information throughout and Full Prescribing Information, including Boxed WARNINGS and Medication Guide, on last pages. 1

2 Here s to Starting with ELIQUIS If you have been diagnosed with atrial fibrillation (AFib), a type of irregular heartbeat, not caused by a heart valve problem, reducing the risk of stroke is important. ELIQUIS is a prescription medicine that can help reduce the risk of stroke and blood clots in people with AFib not caused by a heart valve problem. In a clinical trial, ELIQUIS reduced the risk of stroke better than warfarin. And unlike warfarin, ELIQUIS requires no routine blood testing. Keep reading to learn more about ELIQUIS. Before you start taking ELIQUIS, make sure you go through the entire document. It outlines 3 steps that can help you get the most out of your ELIQUIS treatment. So let s get started. ELIQUIS is a prescription medicine used to reduce the risk of stroke and blood clots in people who have atrial fibrillation (AFib), a type of irregular heartbeat, not caused by a heart valve problem. Selected Important Safety Information For people taking ELIQUIS for atrial fibrillation: Do not stop taking ELIQUIS without talking to the doctor who prescribed it for you. Stopping ELIQUIS increases your risk of having a stroke. ELIQUIS may need to be stopped prior to surgery or a medical or dental procedure. Your doctor will tell you when you should stop taking ELIQUIS and when you may start taking it again. If you have to stop taking ELIQUIS, your doctor may prescribe another medicine to help prevent a blood clot from forming. ELIQUIS can cause bleeding, which can be serious, and rarely may lead to death. This is because ELIQUIS is a blood thinner medicine that reduces blood clotting. Please see Important Safety Information throughout and Full Prescribing Information, including Boxed WARNINGS and Medication Guide, on last pages. 2

3 1 ACTIVATE If You Have a Card for an ELIQUIS Offer, Activate It Today Make sure you activate the cards you re eligible* for before you fill your prescription. To activate, call ELIQUIS ( ), Monday-Friday, 8 AM-8 PM (ET) or visit If you don t already have a card for an ELIQUIS offer, call the number to find out if you re eligible. *Eligibility requirements and terms of use can be found at With ELIQUIS, You ll Also Get ELIQUIS 360 Support It s support that s centered around you. It gives you access to offers, information about your insurance coverage for ELIQUIS, useful guidance, lifestyle tips, and helpful information about AFib not caused by a heart valve problem, its increased risk of stroke, and ELIQUIS. Questions about your insurance coverage for ELIQUIS? 360 Support can help with that Our live agents can check if ELIQUIS is covered by your insurance plan and answer additional insurance questions you may have about ELIQUIS. Prior authorization assistance Sometimes insurance plans require approvals before paying for certain medications. This is called prior authorization. If your insurance plan requires prior authorization for ELIQUIS, one of our agents can provide your prescriber with the correct authorization form. Your prescriber can then complete the form and submit it to your insurance company for review. Assistance with formulary exception requests The list of medications that an insurance plan covers is called a formulary. If ELIQUIS is not on your insurance plan s formulary, your healthcare provider may be asked to submit a formulary exception request. Our agents can supply you and your prescriber with general information about these requests, as well as any necessary documents that may be required. Your prescriber can then complete the documents and submit them to your insurance company for review. For more information call ELIQUIS ( ), Monday-Friday, 8 AM-8 PM (ET) or visit Please see Important Safety Information throughout and Full Prescribing Information, including Boxed WARNINGS and Medication Guide, on last pages. 3

4 2 FILL Fill Your ELIQUIS Prescription An important first step in your treatment is filling your prescription. If you already have an ELIQUIS prescription, don t wait. Make sure to fill your prescription for ELIQUIS right away. Please see Important Safety Information throughout and Full Prescribing Information, including Boxed WARNINGS and Medication Guide, on last pages. 4

5 E TAKE Learn More About Taking ELIQUIS Before you start taking ELIQUIS, take a few minutes to learn more about it. Here are some things you ll learn about over the next couple of pages: Why ELIQUIS could be a better choice than warfarin How ELIQUIS works Why, unlike warfarin, there is no routine blood testing How to take ELIQUIS Possible side effects Selected Important Safety Information You may have a higher risk of bleeding if you take ELIQUIS and take other medicines that increase your risk of bleeding, such as aspirin, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (called NSAIDs), warfarin (COUMADIN ), heparin, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) or serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), and other medicines to help prevent or treat blood clots. Tell your doctor about all of the medicines you take, including any over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. While taking ELIQUIS, you may bruise more easily and it may take longer than usual for any bleeding to stop. Please see Important Safety Information throughout and Full Prescribing Information, including Boxed WARNINGS and Medication Guide, on last pages. 5

6 E TAKE Why ELIQUIS? Here Are 3 Good Reasons In a clinical trial, ELIQUIS reduced the risk of stroke better than warfarin. ELIQUIS also had less major bleeding* than warfarin. In another trial compared to aspirin, ELIQUIS had a modest increase in major bleeding. ELIQUIS and other blood thinners increase the risk of bleeding, which can be serious, and rarely may lead to death. Unlike warfarin, with ELIQUIS there s no routine blood testing. *Included noticeable bleeding with at least 1 of the following: a transfusion of 2 or more units of blood; bleeding that occurred in the brain, spine, eye, around the heart, in a joint, or in a muscle, leading to damage; or fatal bleeding. Selected Important Safety Information Call your doctor or get medical help right away if you have any of these signs or symptoms of bleeding when taking ELIQUIS: unexpected bleeding or bleeding that lasts a long time, such as unusual bleeding from the gums, nosebleeds that happen often, or menstrual or vaginal bleeding that is heavier than normal bleeding that is severe or you cannot control red, pink, or brown urine; red or black stools (looks like tar) coughing up or vomiting blood or vomit that looks like coffee grounds unexpected pain, swelling, or joint pain headaches, or feeling dizzy or weak ELIQUIS is not for patients with artificial heart valves. Please see Important Safety Information throughout and Full Prescribing Information, including Boxed WARNINGS and Medication Guide, on last pages. 6

7 E TAKE How ELIQUIS Works ELIQUIS is a prescription blood thinner, a medicine that lowers the chance of blood clots forming in people with atrial fibrillation not caused by a heart valve problem. ELIQUIS works by blocking Factor Xa (pronounced ten a ), which is a blood clotting factor critical to the blood clotting process. With ELIQUIS, there is no INR* testing With ELIQUIS, there is no need for routine blood testing, such as the INR test or INR monitoring. The INR test checks to see how fast the blood clots. Warfarin is a medication with a narrow therapeutic range. This means that small changes in the medication level may have an impact on the time it takes for blood to clot. Since warfarin has a narrow therapeutic range, the INR test is needed to check a patient s response to warfarin and to adjust the warfarin dose to keep the INR in the target range. ELIQUIS does not have a narrow therapeutic range and, therefore, it is not required for patients taking ELIQUIS to have routine blood testing such as INR monitoring. *International Normalized Ratio Selected Important Safety Information Spinal or epidural blood clots (hematoma). People who take ELIQUIS, and have medicine injected into their spinal and epidural area, or have a spinal puncture have a risk of forming a blood clot that can cause long-term or permanent loss of the ability to move (paralysis). Your risk of developing a spinal or epidural blood clot is higher if: a thin tube called an epidural catheter is placed in your back to give you certain medicine you take NSAIDs or a medicine to prevent blood from clotting you have a history of difficult or repeated epidural or spinal punctures you have a history of problems with your spine or have had surgery on your spine If you take ELIQUIS and receive spinal anesthesia or have a spinal puncture, your doctor should watch you closely for symptoms of spinal or epidural blood clots or bleeding. Tell your doctor right away if you have tingling, numbness, or muscle weakness, especially in your legs and feet. Do not take ELIQUIS if you currently have certain types of abnormal bleeding or have had a serious allergic reaction to ELIQUIS. Please see Important Safety Information throughout and Full Prescribing Information, including Boxed WARNINGS and Medication Guide, on last pages. 7

8 E TAKE How to Take ELIQUIS Be sure to take ELIQUIS exactly as prescribed by your doctor. ELIQUIS is taken twice a day, with or without food. There are no food restrictions or watch outs for certain foods like leafy green vegetables with ELIQUIS. You can continue to enjoy eating the healthy foods you like. If you miss a dose If you miss a dose of ELIQUIS, take it as soon as you remember. Do not take more than one dose of ELIQUIS at the same time to make up for a missed dose. Keep your prescription filled Do not run out of ELIQUIS. Refill your prescription before you run out. Your doctor will decide how long you should take ELIQUIS. Do not stop taking it without first talking with your doctor. Stopping ELIQUIS may increase your risk of having a stroke. If you take too much ELIQUIS, call your doctor or go to the nearest hospital emergency room right away. Call your doctor or healthcare provider right away if you fall or injure yourself, especially if you hit your head. Your doctor or healthcare provider may need to examine you. Selected Important Safety Information Before you take ELIQUIS, tell your doctor if you have kidney or liver problems, have any other medical condition, or have ever had bleeding problems. Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, or plan to become pregnant or breastfeed. You and your doctor should decide if you will take ELIQUIS (apixaban) or breastfeed. You should not do both. Take ELIQUIS exactly as prescribed by your doctor. Take ELIQUIS twice every day with or without food, and do not change your dose or stop taking it unless your doctor tells you to. If you miss a dose of ELIQUIS, take it as soon as you remember, and do not take more than one dose at the same time. If you are taking ELIQUIS for atrial fibrillation, stopping ELIQUIS may increase your risk of having a stroke. Do not run out of ELIQUIS. Refill your prescription before you run out. When leaving the hospital following hip or knee replacement, be sure that you will have ELIQUIS available to avoid missing any doses. Please see Important Safety Information throughout and Full Prescribing Information, including Boxed WARNINGS and Medication Guide, on last pages. 8

9 E TAKE What Are the Possible Side Effects of ELIQUIS? ELIQUIS can cause bleeding, which can be serious and rarely may lead to death. ELIQUIS can cause a skin rash or severe allergic reaction. Call your doctor or get medical help right away if you have any of the following symptoms: chest pain or tightness swelling of your face or tongue trouble breathing or wheezing feeling dizzy or faint Tell your doctor if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away. These are not all of the possible side effects of ELIQUIS. For more information, ask your doctor or pharmacist. ELIQUIS Is Supported by Extensive Clinical Research ELIQUIS was studied in 2 clinical trials in people with AFib not caused by a heart valve problem. Approximately 24,000 people participated in the 2 studies, including more than 11,000 people who took ELIQUIS. The first trial compared ELIQUIS to warfarin in people with AFib not caused by a heart valve problem and who had at least one additional risk factor for stroke. The second trial compared ELIQUIS to aspirin in people with AFib not caused by a heart valve problem who were not suitable for warfarin treatment and who had at least one additional risk factor for stroke. As a result of these clinical trials, ELIQUIS was approved by the FDA to reduce the risk of stroke and blood clots in people with AFib not caused by a heart valve problem. Selected Important Safety Information Possible serious side effects include bleeding or a reaction to ELIQUIS itself. A reaction to ELIQUIS can cause hives, rash, itching, and possibly trouble breathing. If you get this reaction, it will usually happen soon after you take a dose of ELIQUIS. Get medical help right away if you have sudden chest pain or chest tightness, have sudden swelling of your face or tongue, have trouble breathing, wheezing, or feeling dizzy or faint. Please see Important Safety Information throughout and Full Prescribing Information, including Boxed WARNINGS and Medication Guide, on last pages. 9

10 E TAKE How ELIQUIS 360 Support Can Help ELIQUIS 360 Support can help in many ways. On page 3, you learned about the 360 Support offers and information about insurance coverage for ELIQUIS that can help make treatment more accessible. Just as useful are the guidance, lifestyle tips, and helpful information that you can choose to receive by or regular mail. ELIQUIS 360 Support is designed with you in mind it s support that s centered around you. And it s completely free. To take advantage of everything that ELIQUIS 360 Support has to offer, visit or call ELIQUIS ( ), Monday-Friday, 8 AM-8 PM (ET). Moving Forward with ELIQUIS As you may already know, in most cases, AFib not caused by a heart valve problem is a chronic condition. AFib s connection to stroke risk People who have AFib not caused by a heart valve problem are at 5 times greater risk of suffering a stroke 15% of strokes are due to AFib not caused by a heart valve problem AFib is one of the most common risk factors for stroke If you want to learn more about how AFib can lead to a stroke, you can visit ELIQUIS is approved to reduce the risk of stroke due to AFib not caused by a heart valve problem. As you continue with ELIQUIS, remember that nothing takes the place of talking with your doctor. So make sure you check with your doctor to schedule regular follow-up visits. Please see Important Safety Information throughout and Full Prescribing Information, including Boxed WARNINGS and Medication Guide, on last pages. 10

11 Important Safety Information For people taking ELIQUIS for atrial fibrillation: Do not stop taking ELIQUIS without talking to the doctor who prescribed it for you. Stopping ELIQUIS increases your risk of having a stroke. ELIQUIS may need to be stopped prior to surgery or a medical or dental procedure. Your doctor will tell you when you should stop taking ELIQUIS and when you may start taking it again. If you have to stop taking ELIQUIS, your doctor may prescribe another medicine to help prevent a blood clot from forming. ELIQUIS can cause bleeding, which can be serious, and rarely may lead to death. This is because ELIQUIS is a blood thinner medicine that reduces blood clotting. You may have a higher risk of bleeding if you take ELIQUIS and take other medicines that increase your risk of bleeding, such as aspirin, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (called NSAIDs), warfarin (COUMADIN ), heparin, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) or serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), and other medicines to help prevent or treat blood clots. Tell your doctor about all of the medicines you take, including any over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. While taking ELIQUIS, you may bruise more easily and it may take longer than usual for any bleeding to stop. Call your doctor or get medical help right away if you have any of these signs or symptoms of bleeding when taking ELIQUIS: unexpected bleeding or bleeding that lasts a long time, such as unusual bleeding from the gums, nosebleeds that happen often, or menstrual or vaginal bleeding that is heavier than normal bleeding that is severe or you cannot control red, pink, or brown urine; red or black stools (looks like tar) coughing up or vomiting blood or vomit that looks like coffee grounds unexpected pain, swelling, or joint pain headaches, or feeling dizzy or weak ELIQUIS is not for patients with artificial heart valves. Spinal or epidural blood clots (hematoma). People who take ELIQUIS, and have medicine injected into their spinal and epidural area, or have a spinal puncture have a risk of forming a blood clot that can cause long-term or permanent loss of the ability to move (paralysis). Your risk of developing a spinal or epidural blood clot is higher if: a thin tube called an epidural catheter is placed in your back to give you certain medicine you take NSAIDs or a medicine to prevent blood from clotting you have a history of difficult or repeated epidural or spinal punctures you have a history of problems with your spine or have had surgery on your spine If you take ELIQUIS and receive spinal anesthesia or have a spinal puncture, your doctor should watch you closely for symptoms of spinal or epidural blood clots or bleeding. Tell your doctor right away if you have tingling, numbness, or muscle weakness, especially in your legs and feet. Please see Important Safety Information throughout and Full Prescribing Information, including Boxed WARNINGS and Medication Guide, on last pages. 11

12 Important Safety Information (continued) Do not take ELIQUIS if you currently have certain types of abnormal bleeding or have had a serious allergic reaction to ELIQUIS. Before you take ELIQUIS, tell your doctor if you have kidney or liver problems, have any other medical condition, or have ever had bleeding problems. Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, or plan to become pregnant or breastfeed. You and your doctor should decide if you will take ELIQUIS (apixaban) or breastfeed. You should not do both. Take ELIQUIS exactly as prescribed by your doctor. Take ELIQUIS twice every day with or without food, and do not change your dose or stop taking it unless your doctor tells you to. If you miss a dose of ELIQUIS, take it as soon as you remember, and do not take more than one dose at the same time. If you are taking ELIQUIS for atrial fibrillation, stopping ELIQUIS may increase your risk of having a stroke. Do not run out of ELIQUIS. Refill your prescription before you run out. When leaving the hospital following hip or knee replacement, be sure that you will have ELIQUIS available to avoid missing any doses. Possible serious side effects include bleeding or a reaction to ELIQUIS itself. A reaction to ELIQUIS can cause hives, rash, itching, and possibly trouble breathing. If you get this reaction, it will usually happen soon after you take a dose of ELIQUIS. Get medical help right away if you have sudden chest pain or chest tightness, have sudden swelling of your face or tongue, have trouble breathing, wheezing, or feeling dizzy or faint. Please see Full Prescribing Information, including Boxed WARNINGS and Medication Guide, on last pages. ELIQUIS and the ELIQUIS logo are trademarks of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company Bristol-Myers Squibb Company. All rights reserved. 432US14BR /15 12

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