On October 12, Amy Niles joined us to discuss how myasthenia gravis patients can get help paying for out-of-pocket costs associated with their prescription medications.
Amy is the chief advocacy and engagement officer at the PAN Foundation. Since 2004, the PAN Foundation has provided over $4 billion in financial assistance to some one million patients with more than 70 different diseases. MGFA is one of 25 leading national patient advocacy groups around the country allied with the organization to help support patient needs.
The foundation supports people with many different types of cancer along with rare and chronic diseases, including myasthenia gravis.
Amy shared that the PAN Foundation provides three types of funding to patients:
- Medication copays, deductibles, and coinsurance (this is their largest bucket of funding).
- Health insurance premiums.
- Transportation costs associated with treatment.
Funding grants cover the average annual out-of-pocket cost for FDA-approved prescription medications for that disease. For MG, that’s $9,100 per year, per patient. The foundation also covers up to $500 per year in transportation reimbursement.
There are several specific eligibility criteria for an MG patient to qualify for assistance. These include being a U.S. resident and having Medicare insurance and a qualifying income. Learn much more about the process and qualifications for grant awards by watching the webinar (see below).
Amy recommended that patients explore FundFinder.org, a web-based application that the PAN Foundation created to help people easily find financial support resources across multiple organizations. This tool can also keep you updated as new funding opportunities become available.
Amy also talked about PAN’s advocacy arm, which helps patients and policy leaders take action on key issues related to healthcare access, affordability, and equity. She also shared slides to help people understand recent Medicare reforms being implemented over the next two years that will impact prescription costs for people with this insurance.
For more, watch the webinar below.