Ask Mike - Forced to purchase bubble wrapped medications from a particular pharmacy.

Dear Bubblewrap,

Thanks for writing. Your Dad is in an assisted living facility (ALF). Like many others, the facility is requiring you to purchase bubble wrapped medications from a local pharmacy. Your Dad could otherwise receive free medication from the VA, but it is not bubble wrapped. You want to know whether you can set up a week's worth of dosages of the medication from the VA for him, and then call and check to make sure he has taken it.

The short answer is: "Maybe". "It depends." You should ask the ALF Administrator if it is OK. Do so in writing. People generally have a right to self administer their own medicine with or without support to do so and since family is handling and setting up the drugs, their liability shouldn't be an issue. It may be a good idea to become your Dad's Durable Power of Attorney, if you are not already. This would give you legal authority to make decisions for your Dad about his health care including administration of medication. This is often a fairly easy, straightforward process, but like many things, varies from state to state. www.legacywriter.com is a website that offers Durable Power of Attorney forms for every state. I checked and it looks pretty easy and straightforward to use. Some states require the document to be notarized; some don't. My attorney said it might be best to go ahead and get it notarized in any case. You could also contact Legal Aide to see if they could help with this, if you don’t want to hire your own attorney.

If they say, "no", then you may want to get assistance with learning more about the rules governing ALFs in your state and possibly advocating to overturn their denial of your (or your Dad's) request. Our website can help with contact information for agencies that may be able to assist or provide additional referrals to organizations that can.

On our 'Agencies Related to PAS' page try the following agencies until you get a definitive answer: Medicaid Agency, State Unit on Aging, Protection and Advocacy, State Independent Living Council and Centers for Independent Living (Choose the center closest to you.), Aging and Disability Resource Center. Besides possibly clarifying your issue, these agencies may also assist you with advocating, if need be.

I hope things work out. Good luck!

Mike Oxford