Out of Pocket FSH injection costs?

[Anonymous]

Anyone paying out of pocket who can tell me what you pay for your FSH injections? Does it matter what brand? Are some cheaper than others? Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Freedom Pharmacy has the cheapest prices by far on Gonal-f if you are self-pay for meds. The 450iu vial is ~$390. Nobody can come close to touching that pricing, as Freedom has an exclusive deal with the manufacturer for self-pay pricing. Follistim and Bravelle are the other options, but I have not used them to know how they stack up pricing wise with Gonal-f. Hopefully someone else can chime in.

[Anonymous]

Also keep in mind that the 450iu bottle of Gonal-F has 600iu's in it -- the "extra" is there because there it is tricky to get the last 150 out of the vial. But if you are able to get it all out (and the cost is a powerful motivator) then you can save some money that way. I think there is also some extra in the Follistim and Gonal-F pens, but I don't know how much.

While Freedom has the lowest prices for Gonal-F, their prices for other drugs are not as cheap. I ordered everything else from Alexander's Pharmacy.

[Anonymous]

I used Prosperity Specialty pharmacy in Fairfax for all my fertility meds, they even showed me how to inject it since I had some questions after I had my cycle review with the nurse.

[Anonymous]

If you're out of pocket, it really pays to call around the big national fertility pharmacies (Alexanders, Freedom, etc.) every time you cycle to check on prices - they each tend to be hooked up with a certain manufacturer and can offer special pricing that the others cannot. I frequently would order some of my meds from one and some from another. Sometimes the cost of a trigger shot can be almost $50 less from, for example, Prosperity rather than Freedom. Be sure to check on shipping terms and costs, though - some only do free shipping if it is 2-day, and will charge extra for Saturday delivery. And always ask your nurse if they have any extra that someone has donated.

In terms of FSH, it doesn't matter which one you use and I sometimes would mix various types during a cycle. The pens are easier to use, and pricier. But they also have overage. Search Google or ask the pharmacy what the overage amount tends to be. Then use a syringe to withdraw from the pens instead of injecting from them, and don't do the pre-use priming. I think I got an extra 75 from each 450 pen that way, which added up if you're stimming for 10 days.

[Anonymous]

Thanks everyone! I'm hoping that I can get on a new prescription plan that will cover at least part of the meds, but I don't know if it's going to work. I'm not sure we can afford more than one cycle at these prices.

I know I can get on a new plan in July that will cover 100%, but I don't want to wait that long if I can avoid it.