In our last newsletter, we covered some resources available to you to cover your prescription drugs outside of Medicare, in this last article in the series, we will look at pharmaceutical company assistance.

Help from Pharmaceutical Companies

If you have exhausted other resources and/or are still in need of assistance to pay for your prescription drugs, help is available through different pharmaceutical companies. The Partnership for Prescription Assistance (PPA) – has a directory of pharmaceutical company members that offer patient assistance programs. Visit www.pparx.org/sites/default/files/PPA_Directory.pdf to view that directory.

Below are pharmaceutical companies with prescription drugs utilized by GIST patients:

Novartis is committed to providing access to their medications for those most in need through the Novartis Patient Assistance novartis logo.jpgFoundation, Inc. (PAF). PAF provides assistance to patients experiencing financial hardship who cannot afford their medicines or the co-pay of their third party insurance coverage to pay for medicines. To be eligible for Novartis PAF, patients must: be a U.S. resident, provide proof of income within program guidelines and not have private or public prescription coverage. Patients must reapply/requalify annually, which you can do athttps://www.pap.novartis.com/; 1-866-884-5906. If you have insurance and need assistance with your co-Pay contact: https://www.gleevec.com/patient/patient-support-program/registration.jsp

Pfizer‘s Helpful Answers is a family of assistance programs for people who have no insurance, or who do not have enough insurance andpfizer logo need help getting their Pfizer medicines. Programs may provide: Pfizer medicines for free or at a savings to patients who qualify and/or reimbursement support ser-vices to insured patients. GIST patients utilizing Sutent or other Pfizer prescription drugs can apply for:

First Resource Program: Free Pfizer oncology medicines for eligible uninsured and underinsured patients and re-imbursement support services for insured patients.

Pfizer Pfriends Program: Savings on Pfizer medicines through your pharmacy, regardless of income. You must have no prescription coverage to qualify.

To learn more about these and other programs provided by Pfizer, call 1-866-706-2400 or visit www.pfizerhelpfulanswers.com/pages/Misc/Default.aspx. This platform was designed and is administered by Axios International, specialists of chronic care systems in developing countries. The goal is for institutions and their patients in developing countries to gain access to medical products.

Bayer – The REACH Program for Nexavar provides reimbursement information and support to assist patients receiving Nexavar. By bayer logo_pubcalling 1.87.REACH.4IT (1.877.322.4448) and a REACH Program counselor can: Answer your clinical questions about Nexavar and insurance coverage, and also assist you in applying for alternate sources of coverage for Nexavar treatment including assistance for those without adequate coverage.

Help From Other Non-Profit Groups

The following non-profit organizations offer assistance to people who cannot afford medicine or healthcare costs, and in some cases beyond what is received through Medicare/Medicaid. You can also do a search online for other non-profit organizations not listed here by using key words “help with medicine costs” or a similar phrase. Please contact the organization directly to learn more about their services and how they can assist you.

NeedyMeds (http://www.needymeds.org/) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit with the mission of helping people who cannot afford medicine or healthcare costs. The infor-mation at NeedyMeds is available anonymously and free of charge. NeedyMeds offers assistance in the following areas: National, Medicare Prescription Drug Assistance, Insurance Copayment Assistance, and Prescription Assistance. Call (978) 865-4115 for assistance.

Partnership for Prescription Assistance (PPA) (http://www.pparx.org/) is a nationwide effort sponsored by America’s pharmaceutical research and biotechnology companies. PPA helps uninsured and financially struggling patients without prescription drug coverage get the medicines they need for free or nearly free. They offer a single point of access to more than 475 public and private programs, including more than 180 offered by pharmaceutical companies. PPA member programs offer more than 2,500 brand-name medicines, including a wide range of generics. PPA helps patients contact government programs such as Medicaid and Medicare. More than 40 of the assistance programs focus on the medication and health care needs of children. PPA provides information on nearly 10,000 free health care clinics and has connected more than a quarter of a million patients with clinics and health care providers in their communities. PPA also assists patients with chronic disease in learning about the types of new medicines in development that may help them. Call 1-888-4PPA-NOW (1-888-477-2669) for assistance.
The Patient Access Network Foundation (PAN) (http://www.patientaccessnetwork.org/) provides financial support for out-of-pocket costs associated with a wide range of drugs, to treat a number of conditions. Call 1-866-316-PANF (7263) for assis-tance.

Patient Services, Inc. (PSI) (https://www.patientservicesinc.org/) is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit, charitable organization. They provide assistance to patients with chronic illnesses who struggle to keep up with expensive premiums and co-payments. PSI:

  • Locates health insurance in all 50 states
  • Subsidizes the cost of health insurance premiums
  • Provides pharmacy and treatment co-payment assistance
  • Assists with Medicare Part D Coinsurance
  • Helps with advocacy for Social Security Disability

PSI evaluates an individual’s financial, medical, and insurance situation to deter-mine who is eligible for premium or co-payment assistance. They provide help for many illnesses and offer many types of financial assistance. If you would like more information about the financial help available from Patient Services for the treatment of any of the diseases listed on their website (GIST is one of these illnesses), please call 1-800-366-7741. PSI’s Patient Services Representa-tives (PSR) can walk you through the online application process as well as mail you appropriate forms and informative literatur