Insurance often won't fully cover fertility treatment, which means people seeking help starting a family can potentially be on the hook for thousands or tens of thousands of dollars out of their pockets. EMD Serono, the biopharma arm of Merck KGaA in the U.S. and Canada, has rolled out a new digital tool to help.
Patients can visit the Fertility LifeLines portal, either via a webpage or mobile app, to quickly find out whether they're likely to qualify for financial assistance through the company's medication savings programs.
The tool also directs users to other support resources including the option to connect with a live staff person.
EMD Serono, which makes fertility drugs Gonal-F, Ovidrel and Cetrotide, has a long history of providing innovative patient support, said Libby Horne, senior vice president and head of fertility and endocrinology.
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But the pandemic changed the way many patients engage and access resources. While they once sat down with a financial adviser or nurse or chatted with their pharmacist in person, they’re now interacting virtually, Horne noted.
“What was a very high-touch face-to-face care team instantly became digital overnight,” she explained, which got the company thinking about how it could enhance the online experience.
EMD Serono landed on a user-friendly portal focused on helping patients finance their treatment. It based the idea partly on market research showing cost was the most common barrier that kept people from seeing a fertility specialist, regardless of income.
The portal targets the uninsured and the underinsured, the latter of which make up roughly half of all those using the company’s fertility brands, Horne said.
After clicking on a link, patients must answer questions on their age, annual household income and whether they’re a veteran. Depending on the answers, the tool may direct them to another page inviting them to set up a profile and apply for up to 75% off their medication through the company’s compassionate care and compassionate corps programs.
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If they don’t meet the income or other requirements, they’re directed to a different page where they can connect with outside assistance programs or shop for the best price through the company’s pharmacy network. EMD Serono is promoting the tool through its clinic and pharmacy partners as well as on digital and social media.
Whether they’re footing the bill for their entire treatment or using what insurance they do have to cover core procedures, Horne said patients should be able to easily find the best discount program or price for their meds either in person or online.
“We want this to be a moment of relief for the patient, not a moment of pain,” she added.