PPA offers some assistance for Rx drugs.

Have to choose between paying for medicine or paying another important bill? This kind of "choice" reminds us that the word "dilemma" originally referred to the two horns of a bull. Some people face these horns regularly, and their plight has not gone unnoticed. Many organizations have programs to help people pay for prescription reeds. Finding the one that fits individual circumstances is yet another hurdle.

Under-insured or uninsured?

The Partnership for Prescription Assistance (PPA) is designed for people who are underinsured or have no health insurance. It has a Web site with an online tool that determines eligibility for more than 475 public and private patient assistance programs.

It has something else as well. Montel Williams, the national talk show personality, who may well be the nation's most famous person with MS, has stepped up to the plate to help. Serving as the national spokesperson for PPA, Williams is traveling across the country by bus to get the word out about this important program. He has a special empathy for other people with MS who are struggling to meet the costs of the prescriptions they need to tame this disease.

For information on PPA, call 888-477-2669, or go to www.pparx.org.

Insured privately or by Medicare Part D--and still hurting?

Help with premiums and co-pays for the disease-modifying drugs may be available from the Patient Access Network (www.patientaccessnetwork.org; 866-316-7263) or from the National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) (www.rarediseases.org; e-mail [e-mail]). NORD has four intake numbers: Medicare Part D (866-924-0100); private insurance or Avonex users with Medicare Part B (800-634-7207); Copaxone users with insurance (800-247-4963); Copaxone users without insurance (888-211-6650). Funding for the programs may fluctuate.