Rx Medicines

Too many patients can’t afford to fill their prescriptions. Forced to choose between spending hundreds of dollars at the local pharmacy or paying for rent or food, many uninsured Virginians simply throw their prescriptions away.

Others try to stretch their medications by taking their drugs every other day or cutting their pills in half — making the medications virtually worthless.

The result?  Chronic diseases like diabetes, hypertension, asthma and heart disease spiral out of control, resulting in debilitating illnesses, hospitalizations or even more serious consequences.

How VHCF is helping

VHCF is committed to addressing this crisis and has helped connect patients with more than $9 billion in free medications.

  • VHCF’s The Pharmacy Connection (TPC) makes it easier for medical providers to obtain free medications for  chronically ill patients through pharmaceutical company Patient Assistance Programs. TPC  streamlines everything from determining patient eligibility to ordering, tracking and reporting.  More than 200 pharmaceutical companies with over 340 Patient Assistance Programs are TPC partners.
  • RxRelief Virginia supports medication assistance caseworkers in economically disadvantaged areas who help chronically ill patients receive free medications. Using TPC, RxRelief Virginia in GY22 caseworkers connected 10,666 uninsured Virginians from more than 80 localities with $105 million in free or low cost medicines and supplies — using just $1.6 million in state funds. Click here to learn more about RxRelief Virginia.
  • RxPartnership (RxP) provides free bulk medicines from participating pharmaceutical company patient assistance programs (PAPs) to affiliate safety net organizations with licensed pharmacies. In 2017, RxPartnership began a new initiative, Access to Medication Program (AMP) to help clinics without pharmacies have access to generic medicines quickly and easily. To find out more visit RxPartnership.
  • VHCF provides access to comprehensive resources on starting and operating Medication Assistance Programs (MAPS) in Virginia.

Many VHCF grantees utilize VHCF’s The Pharmacy Connection to help their clients receive urgently needed medications for chronic illnesses. For their patients, the medications mean the difference between health and illness and, sometimes, life and death.

Through its grants and initiatives directed toward Rx medications, VHCF is making a significant impact on the health and well-being of Virginians statewide.

Last Updated on October 25, 2023