Understanding your insurance coverage and out-of-pocket costs before you’re treated should be table stakes in healthcare. Unfortunately, it often isn’t. Ro, a direct to patient company, has stepped in to fill this gap for one of the biggest blockbuster drug classes to ever hit the market — GLP-1s for type 2 diabetes and obesity. Ro built a free tool to empower patients with the coverage information they need at the beginning of their journey with GLP-1s. 

Today it’s near impossible for patients to get this information. They have to go to the doctor’s office or to the pharmacy just to check what their coverage looks like. They need to jump through hoops and hope they know the right questions to ask to get accurate information. There are so many people out there who are weary to start a journey with GLP-1s for the sole reason of thinking they can’t afford them but more patients have coverage than you’d think – almost half of patients (47%) do.

The GLP-1 Insurance Coverage Checker dramatically simplifies the process for patients by saving them time with a quick, easy-to-use online tool. Anyone, whether they’re a Ro patient or not, can use the GLP-1 Insurance Coverage Checker to get a personalized results report that:

• Details their insurance coverage for each GLP-1 medication, including whether their policy requires prior authorization;
• Offers an estimated copay and/or their out-of-pocket costs;
• Integrates the latest information about drug supply availability.

To check coverage, patients visit: https://ro.co/checker/ where they will enter their name, insurance info, and some relevant eligibility information. Ro takes it from there and they will get a detailed, easy to understand report delivered to their email in a few days. The full report is presented on a personalized web page – with identifying information excluded – that can easily be shared with their provider or family to discuss treatment options.

Ro is uniquely adept at collecting the right information, confirming each patient’s options, and giving them clear next steps having conducted tens of thousands of benefits checks this year. Our insights from this work revealed that most covered patients pay less than $100/month – about two-thirds who have coverage for weight loss have copays of $100/month or less and 40% pay $50 or less. Ro’s hope is that the GLP-1 Insurance Coverage Checker gives patients the information they need to take the next step in their weight loss journey based on their unique needs and circumstances (whether that’s the insurance or compounded path). Ro is dedicated to fighting for patients and providing them with the information they need to take control of their healthcare.

The GLP-1 Coverage Checker is Ro’s latest effort to build tools and resources that help patients more easily access the weight loss treatment they need to effectively achieve their goals. In May, Ro launched the GLP-1 Supply Tracker to give patients insights on where there are GLP-1 drug shortages and help them find supply with real-time, localized alerts. To date, the GLP-1 Supply Tracker has generated more than 50,000 crowdsourced shortage reports and thousands of supply reports, data which Ro has shared with the FDA.

Price transparency is essential for patient-centric healthcare. Patients shouldn’t be burdened with the task of tracking down their insurance details – they should have convenient access to this information to manage their care effectively. Ro is committed to making healthcare easy and effective for patients and this new tool is a testament to that mission.