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Post by pmikeks on May 11, 2015 13:17:25 GMT -5
I've been a critic of Mannkind management for quite some time. Starting when their presentations were always the same at every conference just talking about the basics of Afrezza and the PPS always went down. They said "forward looking statements" but they haven't had any forward looking statement in many months. I said they were amateurish and inept. I criticized their stock program because they almost always sold everything they acquired through vesting instead of just selling enough to pay taxes and keeping the rest. I was criticized by some for my point of view but generally by the same few people who were bullish on Mannkind management. I'll be nice and say they were talking with their hearts instead of actually knowing what they were talking about. Companies I've worked for, criticized selling company stock unless it was a change of life situation. "They do that to balance their portfolios and their assets" is what I heard, Bull Sh*t, if it weren't for the company they worked for that GAVE them the stock, they wouldn't have to worry about optimizing their portfolios. What they are doing shows no loyalty or belief in the company they work for. The CEO cancelled his future sales which is good but if he knew what he was doing it should have been cancelled for ALL management. In a not too dissimilar situation I told my managers and directors that if they didn't believe in what we were doing, they needed to find the door or I'd show it to them. I only have faith in Al and its slipping because he hasn't cleaned house.
As far as Technosphere, I think there is great opportunity for the technology if they get their heads straight. Here in the South there is a phrase "Fixin-to" which means anything from 'I'm tying my shoes to go' to sometime before the end of time. That is what I hear when they talk about all the opportunities they are looking into for its application. They keep aiming without pulling the damn trigger.
Now that I've vented I'll share my experience to the product that works as 'advertised'. One week ago, I started using Afrezza. My A1c was 9.2 and I have been on Lantus for about 4 years. Granted I wasn't watching what I ate and I wasn't liking where I was headed (more then just a needle at bed time). I told Dr. I wanted to be put on Afrezza and he said he knew about it and agreed. When I went to pick up my prescription it was for Farxiga (among side effects messing up kidneys and increased heart beat). So we had a "chat" and I informed him I had no desire to be on dialysis and increased heart rate was not a good idea for someone with chronic afibrillation even if its controlled by meds. Bottom line was 'put me on it or I'll find a Dr. who will'. He did with the warning that I could easily have hypos and shouldn't take it if my BS was under 150. I shared with him in all the tests there was only a couple that had hypos and there was strong speculation they weren't using it right. He gave up and then gave me the prescription without a breathing test. Its too bad probably most doctors don't know that much about it and are not doing it or not doing it right.
The first couple of days I didn't see much difference in my blood sugar count (160-230+). About the third day, I started to see it start to come down (130-150) and now I'm staying under 120 for the most part. Last night I went through the night with 115 at bed time down to 110 when I woke up without the support of any night time Lantus. I do believe in the product and believe in the long run it will be successful despite management's blundering along.
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Post by nugjuice on May 11, 2015 13:26:46 GMT -5
Thanks for sharing. I'm glad the drug is helping you, and I'm glad you put your foot down to get what you wanted.
But here it is again. Not one single report yet of a Doctor being informed, or recommending this to a patient without them asking for it. Not one. Every single script story I've heard not only involved asking the doctor....a lot involved CONVINCING the Doctor.
How is that happening when SNY reps are supposedly dedicated to this?
Something stinks. I don't like it one bit.
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Post by notamnkdmillionaire on May 11, 2015 13:39:56 GMT -5
There is no doubt that Afrezza is a remarkable drug that works. As for management, well that isn't working so well right now. And that can spell problems for any drug, no matter how well it works.
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Post by compound26 on May 11, 2015 13:43:32 GMT -5
I've been a critic of Mannkind management for quite some time. Starting when their presentations were always the same at every conference just talking about the basics of Afrezza and the PPS always went down. They said "forward looking statements" but they haven't had any forward looking statement in many months. I said they were amateurish and inept. I criticized their stock program because they almost always sold everything they acquired through vesting instead of just selling enough to pay taxes and keeping the rest. I was criticized by some for my point of view but generally by the same few people who were bullish on Mannkind management. I'll be nice and say they were talking with their hearts instead of actually knowing what they were talking about. Companies I've worked for, criticized selling company stock unless it was a change of life situation. "They do that to balance their portfolios and their assets" is what I heard, Bull Sh*t, if it weren't for the company they worked for that GAVE them the stock, they wouldn't have to worry about optimizing their portfolios. What they are doing shows no loyalty or belief in the company they work for. The CEO cancelled his future sales which is good but if he knew what he was doing it should have been cancelled for ALL management. In a not too dissimilar situation I told my managers and directors that if they didn't believe in what we were doing, they needed to find the door or I'd show it to them. I only have faith in Al and its slipping because he hasn't cleaned house. As far as Technosphere, I think there is great opportunity for the technology if they get their heads straight. Here in the South there is a phrase "Fixin-to" which means anything from 'I'm tying my shoes to go' to sometime before the end of time. That is what I hear when they talk about all the opportunities they are looking into for its application. They keep aiming without pulling the damn trigger. Now that I've vented I'll share my experience to the product that works as 'advertised'. One week ago, I started using Afrezza. My A1c was 9.2 and I have been on Lantus for about 4 years. Granted I wasn't watching what I ate and I wasn't liking where I was headed (more then just a needle at bed time). I told Dr. I wanted to be put on Afrezza and he said he knew about it and agreed. When I went to pick up my prescription it was for Farxiga (among side effects messing up kidneys and increased heart beat). So we had a "chat" and I informed him I had no desire to be on dialysis and increased heart rate was not a good idea for someone with chronic afibrillation even if its controlled by meds. Bottom line was 'put me on it or I'll find a Dr. who will'. He did with the warning that I could easily have hypos and shouldn't take it if my BS was under 150. I shared with him in all the tests there was only a couple that had hypos and there was strong speculation they weren't using it right. He gave up and then gave me the prescription without a breathing test. Its too bad probably most doctors don't know that much about it and are not doing it or not doing it right. The first couple of days I didn't see much difference in my blood sugar count (160-230+). About the third day, I started to see it start to come down (130-150) and now I'm staying under 120 for the most part. Last night I went through the night with 115 at bed time down to 110 when I woke up without the support of any night time Lantus. I do believe in the product and believe in the long run it will be successful despite management's blundering along. pmikeks, many thanks for sharing your experiences. Agree with your. A good product will shine through in the end. |
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Post by esstan2001 on May 11, 2015 13:59:48 GMT -5
On this board there are accounts of patients who's doctors knew about and have prescribed them Afrezza.
Any one interested can go back and find them.
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Post by EveningOfTheDay on May 11, 2015 14:05:02 GMT -5
PMIKEKS, appreciate you sharing your experience on Afrezza. Right now the only reason keeping me invested in this stock is exactly that, stories like yours.
I have often said that I could not care less if management sells a few shares here and there, but of course that has not always been the case as some have sold large chunks at every chance they got. Whatever my personal feelings, it is clear that this prolonged situation can be directly link to an erosion of confidence in the company and has been used very successfully by shorts to continually create FUD.
NUGJUICE I had a very similar experience when a T1 friend of mine approached his doctor asking for Afrezza. I mentioned it in this board a while ago and one of the more prominent members pretty much call us, my friend and I, a couple of hillbillies. I have to say that when I reported this Afrezza had barely hit the market, so it might have been to early to judge. Unfortunately it does not seem like anything has changed on this respect. We all, at one point or another, have wondered what the shorts knew or were counting on to, so confidently, wait to cover. There are a lot of short shares that still need to be bought back, something we should not discount, but as things stand right now it sure looks like the shorts had it right when it came to the sp. It might be too early for a judgement call on management, as we are truly in the early stages of a non-launch launch, and do not even know with any level of certainty when a larger push is coming, but yes, I agree with you, something is starting to stink a bit.
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Post by EveningOfTheDay on May 11, 2015 14:08:41 GMT -5
On this board there are accounts of patients who's doctors knew about and have prescribed them Afrezza. Any one interested can go back and find them. Yes you are right, but still the accounts of those who do not know about it or will not prescribe it are a lot more. In any case is the later ones that management and, probably we as investors, should be worrying about. |
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Post by esstan2001 on May 11, 2015 14:16:22 GMT -5
On this board there are accounts of patients who's doctors knew about and have prescribed them Afrezza. Any one interested can go back and find them. Yes you are right, but still the accounts of those who do not know about it or will not prescribe it are a lot more. In any case is the later ones that management and, probably we as investors, should be worrying about. And yes, you too are right; it is now a matter of time to see whether the marketing to Endos / PCP's / and DTC efforts begin to address this in a meaningful manner here, 90ish days after launch. Let us hope (not a word to EVER be used by the CEO) that the mystery marketing expenditures made ($35M ish) on the JV's behalf start to impact this. |
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Post by nugjuice on May 11, 2015 14:23:25 GMT -5
On this board there are accounts of patients who's doctors knew about and have prescribed them Afrezza. Any one interested can go back and find them. Playing devil's advocate to myself this probably isn't the best place to hear those accounts. People with diabetes on this forum are probably investors first and PWD 2nd. I guess I'm just surprised at how every story I've personally read (even on trudiabetes forum) were from people following the story for years and requesting it from their Doctor. Maybe I shouldn't be surprised this early into the launch. Maybe I should. I'm sure those accounts do exist. Unfortuantely, finding things on this board isn't quite as easy as you make it sound  |
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Post by nugjuice on May 11, 2015 14:28:23 GMT -5
PMIKEKS, appreciate you sharing your experience on Afrezza. Right now the only reason keeping me invested in this stock is exactly that, stories like yours. I have often said that I could not care less if management sells a few shares here and there, but of course that has not always been the case as some have sold large chunks at every chance they got. Whatever my personal feelings, it is clear that this prolonged situation can be directly link to an erosion of confidence in the company and has been used very successfully by shorts to continually create FUD. NUGJUICE I had a very similar experience when a T1 friend of mine approached his doctor asking for Afrezza. I mentioned it in this board a while ago and one of the more prominent members pretty much call us, my friend and I, a couple of hillbillies. I have to say that when I reported this Afrezza had barely hit the market, so it might have been to early to judge. Unfortunately it does not seem like anything has changed on this respect. We all, at one point or another, have wondered what the shorts knew or were counting on to, so confidently, wait to cover. There are a lot of short shares that still need to be bought back, something we should not discount, but as things stand right now it sure looks like the shorts had it right when it came to the sp. It might be too early for a judgement call on management, as we are truly in the early stages of a non-launch launch, and do not even know with any level of certainty when a larger push is coming, but yes, I agree with you, something is starting to stink a bit. I lol'd at hillbillies! I will say this, a few of the more 'prominent' members of this board can be very emotional and slightly rude. I try not to get angry b/c I remember how much pressure all of us longs are going through right now. There's a lot of anger/denial/uncertainty going on right now, and I'm sure that stress is making its way into peoples' attitudes. You can't say anything that's even 'neutral' on the stock without being accused of having an agenda, or being a short. But at the end of the day, you can't be married to anyone one stock. There's an old adage about how shorts are smarter than longs. But as the zen master said..."we'll see" |
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Post by compound26 on May 11, 2015 14:28:57 GMT -5
At this stage a lot of the early adopters will be patients who have had some prior knowledge of Afrezza. But as more and more users find out Afrezza, you will see more people who got introduced to Afrezza by other users or their friends. I believe Eric has introduced Afrezza to some friends and they started to use them.
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Post by nugjuice on May 11, 2015 14:44:28 GMT -5
At this stage a lot of the early adopters will be patients who have had some prior knowledge of Afrezza. But as more and more users find out Afrezza, you will see more people who got introduced to Afrezza by other users or their friends. I believe Eric has introduced Afrezza to some friends and they started to use them. Yes, you're right. It does make sense this early on to have it be mostly limited to early adopters who had been following the story in advance. My feelings of uneasiness are probably just coming from the investment losses  |
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Post by esstan2001 on May 11, 2015 14:47:21 GMT -5
On this board there are accounts of patients who's doctors knew about and have prescribed them Afrezza. Any one interested can go back and find them. Playing devil's advocate to myself this probably isn't the best place to hear those accounts. People with diabetes on this forum are probably investors first and PWD 2nd. I guess I'm just surprised at how every story I've personally read (even on trudiabetes forum) were from people following the story for years and requesting it from their Doctor. Maybe I shouldn't be surprised this early into the launch. Maybe I should. I'm sure those accounts do exist. Unfortuantely, finding things on this board isn't quite as easy as you make it sound nugjuice, you were actually in the middle of an exchange where dmb47's brand new endo did not require any convincing to prescribe Afrezza: So I went in to a brand new endo prepared to beg for Afrezza, but I didn't have to. He said it was a great fit for me, and that an insulin pump might be an even better fit, but we could try this first for sure to see how it works for me. Basically he was on board from the get go. I was shocked! I kept trying to convince him, but he was already convinced lol. Eventually I just shut my mouth and realized he was cool with it. Read more: mnkd.proboards.com/thread/1881/got-afrezza-rx-today#ixzz3ZrQbZ8d0...and nugjuice, your response to him: Good luck DMB! Thanks for sharing. Wishing you good health and hoping to hear more about your experience as one of the very early adopters Read more: mnkd.proboards.com/thread/1881/got-afrezza-rx-today#ixzz3ZrQL0hcg |
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Post by spiro on May 11, 2015 14:47:38 GMT -5
Doctors will be hesitant to prescribe Afrezza to new patients until they see actual lab reports from the early users. During the next 4 weeks over 600 of the early Afrezza users should start getting followup lab tests and then an additional 200 or so every additional week. Spiro's will be on May 27. Brian Sharp just reported a 5.7, down from 10.1. How can Doctor's ignore results like that?
Spiro here, depressed in Miami. I wonder if depression can raise blood sugars?
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Post by nugjuice on May 11, 2015 15:11:06 GMT -5
Playing devil's advocate to myself this probably isn't the best place to hear those accounts. People with diabetes on this forum are probably investors first and PWD 2nd. I guess I'm just surprised at how every story I've personally read (even on trudiabetes forum) were from people following the story for years and requesting it from their Doctor. Maybe I shouldn't be surprised this early into the launch. Maybe I should. I'm sure those accounts do exist. Unfortuantely, finding things on this board isn't quite as easy as you make it sound nugjuice, you were actually in the middle of an exchange where dmb47's brand new endo did not require any convincing to prescribe Afrezza: So I went in to a brand new endo prepared to beg for Afrezza, but I didn't have to. He said it was a great fit for me, and that an insulin pump might be an even better fit, but we could try this first for sure to see how it works for me. Basically he was on board from the get go. I was shocked! I kept trying to convince him, but he was already convinced lol. Eventually I just shut my mouth and realized he was cool with it. Read more: mnkd.proboards.com/thread/1881/got-afrezza-rx-today#ixzz3ZrQbZ8d0...and nugjuice, your response to him: Good luck DMB! Thanks for sharing. Wishing you good health and hoping to hear more about your experience as one of the very early adopters Read more: mnkd.proboards.com/thread/1881/got-afrezza-rx-today#ixzz3ZrQL0hcgYes, that's true. The endo was open to prescribing it. But he still asked for it by name. I should have clarified: I"m looking for a story where someone walks into the Doctor and says "I have diabetes, what's the best medicine for me?" without knowing anything about medications, and having the Doctor recommend Afrezza. (Forget the fact that this simplified exchange would obviously never happen!) |
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