Requesting Financial Aid from Medication Companies

So: medication costs. They're a lot. It's a big stressor, and stress isn't good for illness, so the cycle continues. What you may not know is most pharma companies have patient assistance programs for low-income patients!

Unfortunately, this isn't as straightforward as reporting medication issues. I can't just give you the basics of what you need to know, or what you need to have ready, because every program is different. I can tell you some of what you're likely to need, though.

1. Proof of income. This is likely to be your most recent tax statements. So far as I can tell, in the US, a lot of these programs use 300% of the national poverty line as their criteria. As of the time of this post (14Nov2023), a 1-person household making $12,880 is the poverty threshold. This means if you make less than or equal to $38,640, you're likely eligible for these programs.
2. Proof of need. This is probably your doctor's prescription. Some require your doctor to contact them directly; in this case, speaking to your doctor's desk staff is your next step.

Finding the patient assistance for your medication means searching the medication manufacturer and “patient assistance”. I've compiled a list of patient assistance portals for some of the major pharma companies here.

As always, I'm more than happy to answer questions, though I can't promise I have the answers. Often, speaking to your doctor is the best option; they have to deal with pharmaceuticals regularly.

These links are based out of the US, because that's where I am. In order to find your country's version, I suggest searching for the company name, 'patient assistance', and your country name on the internet.

- Generic Financial Aid Search

- AbbVie

- Amgen

- Astrazeneca

- Bayer

- Boehringer-Ingelheim

- Bristol Myers Squibb

- Eli Lilly

- Gilead

- GSK

- Janssen Carepath

- Johnson & Johnson

- Merck

- Novo Nordisk

- Novartis

- Pfizer

- Roche

- Sanofi

- Takeda

- Takeda as well