Since health shares are more for large medical expenses, they do not focus on smaller, routine costs, like prescriptions. However, you should expect your health share to help make your medication costs more manageable.

Here are three ways a health share will help you pay for prescriptions.

1. Medical need sharing 

You may receive direct medication assistance from your health share if you receive a prescription related to a shareable medical need (illness, injury, surgery). There are two main categories of prescriptions you may get help with:  

  • Inpatient medications 
  • Post-event medications 

Inpatient scripts are for medications you might receive while undergoing treatment in the hospital. This could be something like pain management after an emergency or accident. Pretty much every health share will help you with these types of prescriptions since it is in line with the main purpose of a health share: helping with major, unexpected medical situations. 

Once you leave the hospital, your doctor may prescribe medications to help your recovery. For example, you may need a course of antibiotics after surgery. Most health shares will also cover these medications to some extent.

2. Prescription discounts 

Although your health share may not assist with the costs of your routine prescriptions, they may help you find discounts. In fact, if your health share does not offer some means of obtaining discounted prescriptions, that is cause for concern. As of writing this blog, every health share reviewed by this site offers some way for their members to get discounted prescriptions.

The least a health share can do is provide their members access to a discount prescription program that makes discounted medications readily available. Health shares often either partner with a company like GoodRx, or use an in-house service. Your best possible discounts will come on routine generics that may cost as low as $10 for a thirty-day supply. 

3. Maintenance medication sharing 

While you should expect prescription discounts, you should not expect your health share to share in your routine medication costs, with a couple exceptions. 

Since so many members are interested in prescription assistance, some companies are taking notice, and coming up with solutions. For example, Solidarity recently started sharing in the cost of maintenance medications for diagnosed mental health conditions. In this case, Solidarity is extending the reach of need-related or post-event medication sharing. This is good news for members like you because this shows recognition that some medical events require ongoing care—and that medication may play a critical role in that care. 

Conclusion 

You can’t expect your health share to pay for all of your medications. What you can expect is significant help for anything you might need in a major medical situation. In addition, you will absolutely have access to reasonably priced generic medications. Hopefully, in the future, we will see more companies share in maintenance medications.