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How Do I Get Descovy for Free?

You can get Descovy® for free if your insurance covers the cost of your prescription. You may also qualify for a payment assistance program that eliminates your out-of-pocket costs for PrEP (Pre-exposure Prophylaxis) treatment.

Does My Insurance Cover Descovy?

You may be able to get Descovy through your insurance provider. To find out if your plan includes PrEP coverage, contact your insurance provider directly to ask. Be sure to ask how much of the cost your plan covers, and find out if you have to pay for a copay out of pocket. If your insurance plan covers Descovy, Nurx® can bill your provider directly for the cost.

How Do I Qualify for a PrEP Payment Assistance Plan?

If your insurance plan doesn’t cover  Descovyu should ask which other medication they do cover.  If you don’t have health insurance, you may be eligible for free PrEP through a payment assistance program. Some of the available options include:

Get PrEP for HIV Prevention At Home

Nurx offers PrEP for HIV prevention for as little as $0 with insurance for medication.

  • Gilead Advancing Access: Gilead Sciences, Inc., the maker of Descovy, offers several options that can lower or eliminate your prescription costs. If you qualify, this program can lower your copay, assist you if you’re uninsured, and support you if you rely on government-sponsored insurance.
  • Patient Advocate Foundation: This nonprofit organization offers financial assistance to patients who don’t have health insurance or who rely on Medicare and Medicaid but can’t cover the copay costs.

How Much Does Descovy Cost?

If you pay full price, Descovy can be expensive. However, 99% of Nurx patients get PrEP medication for free. Our team can show you how to use your insurance and the Gilead copay program as well as possibly accessing other payment assistance options. Contact us at [email protected] to find out how much PrEP will cost you.

In addition, Nurx charges a $25 consultation fee each time you request a PrEP prescription which is every three months. This fee includes an online consultation with a medical provider, a review of your lab test results, and messaging with our medical team. This fee applies when you request prescription refills, too.

Can I Take a Generic Version of Descovy?

There are no Descovy generics currently on the market. When you get approved for a Descovy prescription, you’ll receive the name-brand medication made by Gilead Sciences.

How Do I Get a PrEP Prescription?

It’s easy to get a PrEP prescription through Nurx. You don’t have to find a local provider or even meet with a healthcare professional in person. Instead, you can request a PrEP prescription with a few clicks on our website or mobile app. Here’s how our prescription process works:

  • Start by answering some simple questions about yourself, including your health history, your current health conditions, and your sexual activity.
  • Our medical team goes over your application to see if PrEP could work for you.
  • If our medical team thinks you’re a good candidate for PrEP, we send you a lab test kit so you can take preliminary HIV and hepatitis B virus (HBV)  and renal function tests. 
  • You collect the samples and return the test kit to our partner, Molecular Testing Labs so they can process it.
  • Our medical team reviews your results to decide if PrEP is the right course of action.
  • If we determine you’re a good candidate for PrEP, we send your prescription to you right away. We send a thirty-day or three-month supply in discreet packaging depending on which your insurance prefers. 
  • To maintain your prescription, you need to repeat the process every 90 days, starting with requesting a prescription refill. We require patients to take HIV and kidney function tests before receiving PrEP refills additionally we recommend STI screening if indicated. 

How Do I Do a PrEP Lab Test?

Because it’s easy and discreet, we recommend at-home lab testing (except in NY state). After the Nurx medical team approves the initial portion of your application, we ask our lab partner to send you a simple at-home test kit. It includes instructions that detail how to collect your samples quickly and correctly. After completing the collection, you can repackage the kit, apply the included mailing label, and send it to Molecular Testing Labs. They test the samples and send the results directly to our medical team so we can process your PrEP prescription.

If you’d rather not do at-home testing, you can choose to go to your local lab instead. Just message our medical team to clarify that you prefer non-home testing. We’ll tell you which tests to request from your lab and where to have the results sent so we can process your prescription.

How Much Do PrEP Lab Tests Cost?

We accept insurance for lab testing as well – but if you choose to pay with insurance your out-of-pocket expense will depend on whether Molecular Testing Labs is in-network with your insurance and on your specific plan’s coverage. We will charge you $25 for a medical consultation. Once your tests have been processed by our partner lab, they will bill your insurance and you will receive a bill for any out-of-pocket costs (in addition to the above fees) including copays and deductibles associated with your plan. Please CLICK HERE to see if your insurance is in-network.  It is important to note that if your insurance is in-network with Molecular Testing Labs and you have not yet met your deductible, you may be billed for the full price of lab testing at the rate negotiated between MTL and your insurance carrier, which is usually around $250-$300. If your deductible has been met then only standard copays will apply. Molecular Testing Labs has a generous financial aid package for qualifying patients. It is highly recommended that you call your insurance provider so that you do not end up with any financial surprises. 

*BLUECROSS OF CALIFORNIA OR COVERED CALIFORNIA PATIENTS PLEASE NOTE: Though these plans are in-network with the Molecular Testing Labs, we’ve found that some of our patients have had these plans deny the testing and leave the bill to the patient. We encourage you to contact your insurance to ask if Molecular Testing Labs is an acceptable lab with your insurance plan, and that they will have no issues with the lab testing being processed in Oregon which is where the lab is located.

If your insurance is out-of-network with Molecular Testings Labs we have a negotiated rate of $99 for lab testing, which will be billed to you directly by MTL. Please see more information about out-of-network plans CLICK HERE.

If you’d prefer not to do home testing you are welcome to have your labs done at a local lab like LabCorp or Quest. Once you have submitted your request for PrEP, simply message us and tell us that you would like lab testing at LabCorp or Quest. Pricing at local labs depends on your insurance coverage. We recommend calling your insurance company in advance to confirm whether LabCorp or Quest is the in-network laboratory.

If you have any questions about insurance coverage for laboratory testing, please call your insurance company and ask them the following questions:

  1. Is Molecular Testing Labs in-network?
  2. Do I have a deductible for lab testing?
  3. Do I have a copay or co-insurance associated with my insurance plan?
  4. If they ask which lab tests will be ordered please refer to the information below to see what is included in the test kit in addition the CPT and Diagnosis Codes used.

PrEP Comprehensive Kit: Chlamydia (Site: Genital) Chlamydia (Site: Throat) Chlamydia (Site: Rectal) Gonorrhea (Site: Genital)

Gonorrhea (Site: Throat) Gonorrhea (Site: Rectal) HIV Syphilis Hep B Creatine

PrEP Basic Kit:

HIV Hep B Creatinine

CPT Codes: 82565 86780 87340 87389 87491 87591

Dx Codes:

Z20.6 Z11.3 Z11.4 Z51.81

 

However, if you don’t have insurance or if your plan doesn’t cover lab testing, you can pay out-of-pocket for at-home testing. You can choose from two out-of-pocket options:

  • $164: This complete lab kit includes the two required tests for HIV and HBV along with recommended tests for common sexually transmitted diseases (STIs).
  • $94: This basic lab kit includes only the required tests for HIV and HBV.

How Do I Take Descovy?

Descovy is a daily medication, so you should take it every day as prescribed by your Nurx medical provider. You can take Descovy with or without food. Descovy must be taken daily and is not approved for patients who have vaginal intercourse. 

Nurx prescribes generic PrEP unless you have a medical reason why you must take Descovy.

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