For all of the resources out there that can help with accessing affordable mental health care, one area of treatment often goes overlooked – mental health medication. While it’s true that many people can successfully work through mental illness with counseling alone, many would also benefit from receiving prescribed medication to supplement therapy.
For those who have health insurance, mental health medication is frequently covered as any other medication type. But for those who don’t have health insurance or who are prescribed a medication that isn’t covered, the out-of-pocket cost for medication can be too high to manage. If this happens to you, take a look at our three best tips on how you can save money on your prescription mental health meds:
Work with your doctor: While your prescribing physician might have a clear idea on the best medication to help you, they may not have a clue how much that medication will actually cost or if it’s covered by your health coverage. However, your doctor also has a lot they can do to help if the price of medication is an issue.
Some things you can ask them are to prescribe a generic (if they think it will be as effective); prescribe an alternative, lower-cost medication; or, to provide a sample of a medication (while this isn’t a long-term solution, this can be a great way to test a new medication before buying or to help “carry a patient over” if they run out of a medication).
Sign up for the NACo Prescription Discount Program: This program, offered through the National Association of Counties, is available in certain places across the United States. By signing up, you’ll receive a discount prescription card that, when presented at eligible pharmacies, gives an average 24% savings off the cost of prescriptions. To learn more about the program, visit the NACoRx page here.
Use the Partnership for Prescription Assistance: PPA is a national program that combines the efforts of many prescription assistance services into a streamlined eligibility review process. At this site, you’ll be asked to complete a few questions about your demographics and income, and then linked to potential prescription assistance programs that you may be eligible for. While there are many sites online that claim to offer this service, PPA is one of the few that is legitimate and free for patients. To learn more, visit the PPA site here.
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