If you have kids who suffer from food allergies, the Auvi-Q could help shake up your back-to-school shopping routine. In fact, you may be able to get this EpiPen alternative for free and save hundreds of dollars in the process.
How to get the Auvi-Q for free
My 10-year-old has been a lifelong food allergy sufferer. Each summer, we go for an annual checkup at the allergist and get a new prescription for an EpiPen for the coming school year.
If you’ve ever had to get an EpiPen, you know they can be frightfully expensive. The retail price for a two-pack is somewhere around $600. As the #1 prescribed epinephrine auto-injector, the EpiPen can command that high of a price.
Pharmaceutical company Mylan makes a savings card available online that can lower the cost by up to $300. And, you can always use a website or app like GoodRx or RxSaver to comparison shop pharmacies in your area for the EpiPen.
When we checked prices on GoodRx, we got quotes that were in the low $100s. That’s not as bad, but it’s still kind of expensive.
(Editor’s note: We’ve got full explanations of how to use both GoodRx and RxSaver to save money on most prescriptions here and here.)
Two ways to get free Auvi-Q if you’re privately insured
This year, instead of just doing the same old thing and getting another EpiPen, I found out about the Auvi-Q.
Manufactured by Kaléo, Auvi-Q was invented by brothers Eric and Evan Edwards, who grew up with life-threatening food allergies themselves. For that reason, they were acutely aware of both the benefits and shortcomings of industry incumbent EpiPen.
The really cool thing about Auvi-Q is that you can get it for free through the company’s own direct delivery service if you have any type of commercial insurance.
There are two ways to get your free Auvi-Q under this program:
- Go online to download the enrollment form.
- Call 1-877-30-AUVIQ to get the process started.
Note that this offer is not valid if you get any kind of government-funded insurance. That includes Medicare Part D, Medicaid, VA insurance and Tricare.
No commercial insurance? No worries — you can still qualify!
Meanwhile, if you don’t have commercial insurance, you may still qualify for free Auvi-Q — but under the Kaléo Cares Patient Assistance Program (KCPAP).
To qualify for the KCPAP program, you must:
- Have a valid prescription
- Be a legal U.S. resident
- Not have any government or commercial drug coverage*
- Not have annual household income of more than $100,000
* There’s a special waiver available for Medicaid-eligible patients under the terms of the KCPAP program that makes Auvi-Q free.
You can get more complete details on both programs here.
