No multiple sclerosis treatment, no matter how effective, can help you if you can't afford it. Typically, when a newer and more effective drug enters the market, the prices of older drugs go down. That has not been the case with MS drugs.

In 2015, a paper in Neurology charted the rise of MS drug prices over the past 10 to 15 years and found that all the drugs examined had a list price of at least $50,000 per year in 2013, with most of them racking up an annual tab of over $60,000. Even drugs that have been on the market for 20 years or more have seen their prices go from around $10,000 per year when they were introduced to $50,000 to $60,000. MS drug prices are five to seven times higher than other prescription drugs, according to the paper—and they continue to escalate.

These overall list prices don't tell you what you will actually pay for the drug. That depends on what kind of insurance you have and what other resources might be available to you, like manufacturer patient assistance programs and foundation support. Two good resources are the National Multiple Sclerosis Society's financial assistance guide and Needymeds.org.

Here are seven questions to ask your insurance company, and/or the specialty pharmacy that dispenses your medications.

1. What will my out-of-pocket cost be?
2. Is there a copay (a single, fixed cost you pay with each prescription refill) or coinsurance (a percentage of the overall cost of the drug)?
3. Is this medication preferred or non-preferred by my insurance plan? (Non-preferred drugs not on an insurance company's formulary will cost you more.)
4. Am I required to try another drug first before my insurance company will pay for this one?
5. What other rules could either lower or increase my costs, such as which pharmacy I use?
6. Would it cost less to get this medication in a different location? (That primarily applies to medications that are infused intravenously; getting an infusion at outpatient infusion centers is typically less expensive than in doctors' offices, and both are less expensive than in hospitals.)
7. Do I qualify for financial assistance from a manufacturer's patient assistance program, a foundation, or another resource?

Read our guide on choosing appropriate disease-modifying therapy for MS.