Anyone with a chronic illness knows what a toll the disease can take on a person going through treatment. The impact is widespread and far-reaching, touching every part of a patient, including their emotions, body, mind, loved ones, and finances. Today I decided to focus on the financial piece of dealing with a chronic illness and encourage those with one to do a little research (aka click the links below) and see if they qualify for some help. There are many non-profit organizations who are doing great work to try and help those managing chronic illness. Like the old McDonald’s jingle says, “you deserve a break today.” Why not see if there is one out there?
Partnership for Prescription Assistance
This is a website that lists 475 programs (public and private) that help with medication assistance, copay assistance, and free/low-cost clinics. The website is very comprehensive, and have direct links to each program.
Help with medication bills, copays, and travel expenses. This non-profit organization helps people with various chronic illnesses. Check this link to see which diseases this fund are currently open to accepting. Examples include multiple sclerosis, lupus, pancreatic cancer, liver cancer, multiple myeloma, and more.
This is a website that lists 475 programs (public and private) that help with medication assistance, copay assistance, and free/low-cost clinics. The website is very comprehensive, and have direct links to each program.
This is a non-profit organization that works directly with each pharmaceutical company's patient assistance program to assist you in the administrative process which the pharmaceutical companies require to receive their medication. They charge an $18 per prescription per month service fee as well as a yearly enrollment fee of $20. They manage all your applications and communicate with your doctors to make sure you get your meds on time. They offer assistance with 1500 brand name medications. Qualifications: You cannot be on Medicaid, and need to make less than $30,000 as a single person or $50,000 as a couple.
This is a non-profit organization that is a database with information for people who cannot afford their medication and health care costs. You can search by medication to see if there are any patient assistance programs through the pharmaceutical companies, and what the qualifications are to apply. They also list any college scholarships that are available by diagnosis.
This is only for US citizens or permanent residents who meet financial criteria and have one of the chronic or acute illnesses they have funding for. As of today, they are accepting patients with cystic fibrosis and multiple sclerosis.
This database allows you to search by age, state, diagnosis, and the type of assistance needed (housing, transportation, meds, food, insurance premiums, academic scholarships, etc). They include currently: Autoimmune diseases, cancer, diabetes, digestive system disorders, kidney diseases, lung disease, mental health, pain, pediatric conditions and more! They provide potential scholarships for higher education, up to $3000 for those under the age of 25. Patient must have been in treatment within the last 5 years for a chronic or life-threatening illness and also enrolled full-time and maintain a 3.0 GPA.