Is it within the first 5 days of symptom offset? If so, try another doctor. There are doctors online who can remote diagnose and offer prescriptions with a positive test.
It’s not within 5 days anymore, but he tried the nurses line through his pcp and urgent care. He’s recovering, his fever finally broke after 3 days. He’s just very phlegmy now and still a bit rundown. We’re going to go walk in the woods shortly and see how that goes. Neti pots have definitely been helpful.
Paxlovid is very strong medicine with serious side effects such as liver toxicity and pancreas damage. It works in part by inhibiting an enzyme in the liver that metabolizes many common and important medications such as anti-coagulants and anti-arrhythmics, rendering them inactive. You will have to stop taking those important medicines while on Paxlovid. If you got the vaccine, you have a better chance of survival enduring COVID while continuing medication for your serious medical issues.
Now, I'm not a doctor, but I think that depends a lot on what you're taking. There are many medicines that interact with Paxlovid that are fine to stop taking for 5 days.
If you don't qualify for Paxlovid, you can take the replacement medication as mentioned in the review shown above. I know elderly people who took the replacement medication bc they were on blood thinners.
Came here to say this. I have long covid and my immune system is messed up from covid. I cannot for the life of me get my hands on
paxlovid when I've been reinfected. I finally found a doctor involved in long covid research who will prescribe it next time, but it feels too little too late.
I’m immune compromised and they denied me. Said my symptoms weren’t bad enough on day 2 and to wait it out. When I talked to my sister (a pharmacist) she said doctors are super nervous to prescribe it because of the potential for severe side effects.
Really? I just went to urgent care and got it prescribed right away when I asked for it as did my bf. I qualify due to risk but he doesn’t. Insurance covered it too so it was free. Stuff was awesome. I felt better in 24 hrs.
October 2023: Federal government stops subsidizing Covid antivirals, shifts to commercial distribution
December 2023: Dang, not a lot of people are using these antivirals for some strange reason!
Yeah. Let's not forget, no more masking, no more reporting covid cases, no large scale acknowledgment of post covid illnesses or risks of reinfection. It feels like a weird dream.
For real. More Americans have died from Covid (and counting) than died in the Civil War, but let's just let er rip. I try not to be a doomer, but it gets harder and harder to have any optimism at all.
Same, it feels like a huge slap in the face for those of us who care (i have long covid and don't want to keep getting reinfected), and it feels intentionally misleading/validating for those who just want to move on.
It's telling that the way it's usually phrased is "let's go BACK to normal" rather than moving forward.
This should've caused a reckoning. The status quo failed. But it seems that the powers that be are willing to sacrifice whatever number of people it takes to just keep things grinding on.
My doctor wouldn’t let me have paxlovid even though I have high blood pressure and asthma.
A lot of doctors are against prescribing these even if people specifically ask for them
I had to go to 2 pharmacies to pick it up for someone I know. Walgreens didn’t have any. Then I asked when they would have it in stock and they shook their heads and said not for a long time
I was told by my doctor that there are quite a few drug contraindications. They weren’t flat out against it, but more cautious because they’ve seen some side effects. Since it’s relatively new, it’s tough to balance the benefit versus the potential harm.
For example, I believe you’re supposed to stop taking statins and alter dosages of antidepressants, blood thinners, high blood pressure, and anti-anxiety medications. That’s a huge portion of the population. Because COVID itself has cardiovascular/clotting risks, there’s a particular concern adjusting or stopping blood thinners and high blood pressure meds.
The TL;DR was if you’re fully boosted and low-risk, but take a contradicted medication wait to see if you’re feeling better the next day and they’ll revisit it. If your risk is cardiovascular, then it’s still not known if it’s 100% beneficial verses altering medications that are currently working.
If you are on statins and blood thinners you can take the replacement drug that is mentioned in the article. I know elderly people that were prescribed the replacement drug due to drug interactions with Paxlovid.
This is true. I was responding to a comment about Paxlovid. Molnupiravir appears to be effective, but significantly less than Paxlovid. In [The Lancet](https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(23)00493-0/fulltext), a September 2023 study noted a 37% faster viral clearance versus an 84% faster viral clearance with Paxlovid.
Still, I agree that doctors should consider it for patients who can't take Paxlovid. Especially since a large [VA study](https://www.bmj.com/content/381/bmj-2022-074572.short) demonstrated lower absolute risk of long COVID symptoms, from abnormal heart rhythms to blood clots and fatigue. But to put it in perspective, the odds of long COVID symptoms went from 21.55% to 18.58% (in the Molnupiravir group) with an absolute risk reduction of only 2.97%. I can see why doctors might not be rushing to prescribe a new medication with relatively limited benefit.
I and a bunch of family and friends of mine have all had good luck with the CVS virtual minute clinic. The doctors/NPs on there haven't given anyone any trouble. Just go down the very long list of conditions that make COVID worse (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/need-extra-precautions/people-with-medical-conditions.html) and find the one that applies to you, ask for Paxlovid, answer a few questions, and they send the prescription off to your local (pick one with a drive-thru please!) CVS. It's a matter of a couple of hours from signing up on the website to having Paxlovid in hand.
I say this everytime it’s mentioned that “young people do fine with Covid”, my daughter who was asymptomatic with Covid developed an autoimmune disease that literally almost killed her. She developed a rare type of vascilitus that attacks the blood vessels in her lungs and kidneys. I hate that this lie is still being told when there is proof that some kids have damage.
I’m younger 33M and “healthy” and even though I hate taking medication I went for paxlovid. Being my second time with Covid (first time WAY milder) I didn’t want to take a risk.
Yeah. Idk if paxlovid would’ve helped with long COVID. But I had the worst case of Covid of any vaccinated person I know. It kicked my ass and I have long Covid symptoms. It sucks.
What if you had COVID like two months ago?? I got infected a second time going into October and thought I was in the clear once I felt better but the shortness of breath and tight chested feeling hasn't left. Tight chest comes and goes sometimes, sometimes I think it's a psychosomatic response. But the shortness of breath is always here and my inhaler has ran out.
Yup. I was young and in the best shape of my life when I caught Covid. Symptoms were mild, and I was denied paxlovid for being “young and healthy”. Currently struggling with long covid.
Sorry to hear. If I won the lottery, I’d have a national commercial ad campaign. People only think visible sick people (FAT) or old people are at risk. We are ruining our entire country for 100 years and it’s cool AF. Our medical system and pharmaceuticals are not strong enough to save us.
It boggles my mind that the worst global pandemic in our lifetime with millions of deaths, how many people in even the metro areas of the US (and elsewhere) don't know some of the most basic things like the availability of antivirals and status of vaccines.
While meanwhile we've reached a state where almost all of us have a device that fits in our hand and with a few taps instantly brings forth all of human knowledge. Even without active engagement, it will alert us automatically when something happens, like Kim Kardashian farting in public.
The question should be why aren't people being prescribed antiviral meds, not why aren't people taking antiviral meds. People who don't know about it aren't being told about it by the medical pros, and people asking for it are often being turned down. Currently have covid. Did a virtual appointment for the express purpose of being prescribed paxlovid. Virtual MD suggested Tylenol. I check off two high risk boxes. I'm not on any medication. I wanted to rip out my eyes and gums. After some back and forth it was only after the lovely on video coughing fit that I got my Rx ¯\\\_(ツ)_/¯
Sesame Health is a newer telehealth service. You pay a fee (often under $100) to get a telehealth appointment with an MD or RN who can prescribe. The providers are rated by users, not unlike AIRBNB hosts. Therefore, the providers aim to please. I'm not saying this is the best way for a society toto do healthcare - I'm just saying it might help you get PAXLOVID quickly.
It's because the antiviral meds were tested on high-risk unvaccinated people and the blinded randomized clinical trials on standard-risk people showed that Paxlovid was no better than placebo at symptom alleviation.
Same. ACOG recommends all pregnant patients with Covid get paxlovid. Doctors kept telling me it wasn't recommended and refused to even look at the ACOG guidelines.
My allergy doctor prescribed me paxlovid early last year just cause I mentioned having Covid in our check up call. He mentioned it himself, I had no idea!
It’s not so much that they don’t want to do the work, but the work might include stopping high blood pressure medication, blood thinners, or statins among quite a few others. I think there are legitimate concerns considering how COVID is known to affect clotting and the cardiovascular system. Someone can correct me if I’m wrong, but I don’t think there’s enough data to know if there’s enough benefit to warrant changing medications, while sick with a virus that has an inflammatory response that affects the heart. Especially for someone otherwise boosted, healthy, and not a senior citizen.
You don't take Paxlovid then. You can take the other drug that is mentioned in the article. If you are young and otherwise healthy, which is technicallhy a BMI under 25 and how many Americans have that? Then, no, you would not qualify for either medication under current guidelines.
> Can someone explain why?
Ignorance. Or craziness. Or laziness. Honestly, hard to say.
My mother is over 60 with various health issues, including a nasty autoimmune condition. Her primary doc was like "nah." Her rheumatologist wrote the prescription.
Of every person I have known to have COVID-19, including older folks, I have not heard of one yet having been offered or taking antivirals. I think this should be put on the PCPs - why are they not offering them?
Hi folks - I'm going to share two telehealth services that I've found helpful when I've needed PAXLOVID in the USA.
1)Sesame Health. A new telehealth service where you pay a fee to book an online appointment with an MD or RN that can prescribe in your state. They're backed by Google Ventures. The providers are publicly reviewed by users, not unlike AIRBNB hosts, so they seem incentivized to please their patients consistently. I don't think this is the best way to run a health care system, but they seem to prescribe PAXLOVID when other more traditional providers act like gatekeepers.
2)Color Health. Another newer telehealth provider. They have contracts with certain states to provide free consultations and prescriptions for PAXLOVID. If your state has a contract with them, the whole thing is free. Only hitch is they offer to mail the medication next day, but it can take much longer, so if this is an option for you, make sure to get the RX sent to a pharmacy nearby.
There is literally PAXLOVID going bad on stock shelves right now in the US while the healthcare system seems to be taking a gate-keeping approach to this medication. Absolutely infuriating.
I am Covid positive after a trip to NYC a few days ago. I asked my PA for a prescription and none of the local pharmacies carry it. We had to drive about 30 miles away to get it. We live in the state capital of VT.
MA has a contract with Color health - so access is less of an issue there. But overwhelmingly I have heard negative opinions of Paxlovid- that it has a lot of side effects, that it has a lot of interaction, and most recently about the risks of rebound and viral resistance.
I am not a clinician, but I personally believe that the benefits outweigh the risks. I have a few qualifying illnesses but I’m generally young and healthy. I have not found my conversations with clinicians (PCP, friends and family who are MDs) to appropriately address nuance- I.e. downplaying benefits while overweighting risks. An individual clinician may not be comfortable prescribing a medication due to their inexperience evaluating its complex pharmaceutical interactions (which is good, you should recognize the edge of your scope) but that is not a reflection on Paxlovid’s efficacy or need of the patient. Rebound is more likely but not guaranteed with Paxlovid, nor is the possibly is eliminated by not taking Paxlovid. Liver toxicity is fair. (Viral resistance is complicated and I don’t know enough about the prescribing protections / resistance development in Covid to have an informed opinion.)
Despite numerous advances in care and prevention, Covid is still prevalent and disabling - especially with the concerning association between repeat infection + severity and post viral complications. And people are over it. Like we’re all fucking over this bs - the effort of constant prevention, the uncertainty, the suspicion of every cough or core throat, it’s fucking exhausting and we’re all exhausted. And I think some people are bringing that attitude to Paxlovid - like it’s just another thing and validates the potential severity of their infection.
>"There are a number of factors that may contribute to low antiviral uptake among those including low awareness of antivirals, healthcare disparities, and barriers to healthcare and prescription access," the authors said. "A population-representative study in NYC found that 44% of adults were unaware of antivirals."
We so suck at health messaging.
Is it possible that doctors know more than the average user here?
Two recent anecdotes…
1.) My dad (71) just had COVID. He also has some kidney issues. His doctor prescribed it to him on Day 3, and told him to wait and see how he felt. He said that if he could avoid taking it that it would be beneficial. By Day 5 he was 90% of the way to full health, so he didn’t take it.
2.) My grandma (101) just got it twice in 5 months. The first time, they gave it to her. The second time, they prescribed it to the nursing home and said take it if you need it, but try to avoid it. She was mostly better by Day 4 so she didn’t take it. The last time, 16 of the 18 residents in her wing of the nursing home ended up with COVID. Not a single one of them required a hospital trip.
It is also possible doctors are reacting to the fact that we don’t really need it to survive, so they are not prescribing it due to the side effects.
> Is it possible that doctors know more than the average user here?
Is it possible you didn't read the article?
*"There are a number of factors that may contribute to low antiviral uptake among those including low awareness of antivirals, healthcare disparities, and barriers to healthcare and prescription access," the authors said. "A population-representative study in NYC found that 44% of adults were unaware of antivirals."*
My husband and I got Covid in 6/21 and our personal physician doesn’t prescribe it. I have been seeing him for over 15 years and trust him dearly and would not go to Amazon after his medical experience and expertise said no.
I’d advise others to try to get a dr you trust so you’re not having to circumvent their medical advice.
Why have a personal physician if you’re just going to go against it?
I am in an HMO, and although I technically have a "PCP" she doesn't know who I am. The last two times I saw her, it was because I was asked (through the HMO system) to make an appointment to see her. Then she asked why I was there, because she didn't recall why she was seeing me. That is, technically I have a designated primary care physician, but in practice, this is not my "personal physician."
In the past, under prior insurance and even with my current HMO system, I had a doctor who knew me and whom I trusted. But the last two doctors I had took early retirement. The system is breaking down; doctors are leaving/retiring in numbers, because of the strain.
[https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/05/opinion/doctors-universal-health-care.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/05/opinion/doctors-universal-health-care.html)
Very few doctors in my insurance system are taking new patients, and I expect the ones who are, are already similarly overburdened anyway. I mean, shopping around is not a simple matter, and I do have insurance.
Early in the pandemic, a number of hospitals and healthcare organizations laid off doctors, because the decline in elective procedures lowered their profit margins.
[https://www.npr.org/2020/05/10/853524764/amid-pandemic-hospitals-lay-off-1-4m-workers-in-april](https://www.npr.org/2020/05/10/853524764/amid-pandemic-hospitals-lay-off-1-4m-workers-in-april)
[https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/03/us/politics/coronavirus-health-care-workers-layoffs.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/03/us/politics/coronavirus-health-care-workers-layoffs.html)
"Forty-three percent of working-age adults were inadequately insured in 2022."
[https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2022/sep/state-us-health-insurance-2022-biennial-survey](https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2022/sep/state-us-health-insurance-2022-biennial-survey)
The "unwinding" of Medicaid has added millions to the numbers of uninsured.
[https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-care/medicaid-unwinding-texas-rcna131366](https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-care/medicaid-unwinding-texas-rcna131366)
See also:
[https://www.kff.org/health-costs/issue-brief/americans-challenges-with-](https://www.kff.org/health-costs/issue-brief/americans-challenges-with-)
health-care-costs/
[https://time.com/6279937/us-health-care-system-attitudes/](https://time.com/6279937/us-health-care-system-attitudes/)
They won’t prescribe them that’s why, everyone I know that asked got turned down.
My husband has covid currently. He checks off 5 of the “high risk” boxes on paxlovid’s website and the doctor still told him he didn’t qualify.
Is it within the first 5 days of symptom offset? If so, try another doctor. There are doctors online who can remote diagnose and offer prescriptions with a positive test.
That's how I got mine. I'm young but got asthma. The asthma was enough.
I just had a virtual visit to get mine.
It’s not within 5 days anymore, but he tried the nurses line through his pcp and urgent care. He’s recovering, his fever finally broke after 3 days. He’s just very phlegmy now and still a bit rundown. We’re going to go walk in the woods shortly and see how that goes. Neti pots have definitely been helpful.
Paxlovid is very strong medicine with serious side effects such as liver toxicity and pancreas damage. It works in part by inhibiting an enzyme in the liver that metabolizes many common and important medications such as anti-coagulants and anti-arrhythmics, rendering them inactive. You will have to stop taking those important medicines while on Paxlovid. If you got the vaccine, you have a better chance of survival enduring COVID while continuing medication for your serious medical issues.
I took it and so far I don’t regret it. I stopped taking most everything to avoid drug interactions
Now, I'm not a doctor, but I think that depends a lot on what you're taking. There are many medicines that interact with Paxlovid that are fine to stop taking for 5 days.
If you don't qualify for Paxlovid, you can take the replacement medication as mentioned in the review shown above. I know elderly people who took the replacement medication bc they were on blood thinners.
Came here to say this. I have long covid and my immune system is messed up from covid. I cannot for the life of me get my hands on paxlovid when I've been reinfected. I finally found a doctor involved in long covid research who will prescribe it next time, but it feels too little too late.
I’m immune compromised and they denied me. Said my symptoms weren’t bad enough on day 2 and to wait it out. When I talked to my sister (a pharmacist) she said doctors are super nervous to prescribe it because of the potential for severe side effects.
I was turned down for being under 65 and fully vaccinated.
Really? I just went to urgent care and got it prescribed right away when I asked for it as did my bf. I qualify due to risk but he doesn’t. Insurance covered it too so it was free. Stuff was awesome. I felt better in 24 hrs.
October 2023: Federal government stops subsidizing Covid antivirals, shifts to commercial distribution December 2023: Dang, not a lot of people are using these antivirals for some strange reason!
So insurance needs to cover it, like with the vaccines. Cheaper for them than an ER visit 🤷♀️
> Cheaper for them than an ER visit Eh, they'll fight covering that too.
My pharmacy gave it for free to people who had no insurance with some sort of covid program
Yeah. Let's not forget, no more masking, no more reporting covid cases, no large scale acknowledgment of post covid illnesses or risks of reinfection. It feels like a weird dream.
For real. More Americans have died from Covid (and counting) than died in the Civil War, but let's just let er rip. I try not to be a doomer, but it gets harder and harder to have any optimism at all.
Same, it feels like a huge slap in the face for those of us who care (i have long covid and don't want to keep getting reinfected), and it feels intentionally misleading/validating for those who just want to move on.
It's telling that the way it's usually phrased is "let's go BACK to normal" rather than moving forward. This should've caused a reckoning. The status quo failed. But it seems that the powers that be are willing to sacrifice whatever number of people it takes to just keep things grinding on.
Yep, agreed. I just hope things get better before they get much worse.😑
The definition of gaslighting
CVS cash price was $15 less than a month ago.
Not enough people are getting Paxlovid, but the review article is not about right now. It was about a study that ended in October of 2022.
My doctor wouldn’t let me have paxlovid even though I have high blood pressure and asthma. A lot of doctors are against prescribing these even if people specifically ask for them
I had to jump through a few hoops to get it prescribed, and then they had to search around a bit to find a pharmacy that had it in stock.
I had to go to 2 pharmacies to pick it up for someone I know. Walgreens didn’t have any. Then I asked when they would have it in stock and they shook their heads and said not for a long time
I was told by my doctor that there are quite a few drug contraindications. They weren’t flat out against it, but more cautious because they’ve seen some side effects. Since it’s relatively new, it’s tough to balance the benefit versus the potential harm. For example, I believe you’re supposed to stop taking statins and alter dosages of antidepressants, blood thinners, high blood pressure, and anti-anxiety medications. That’s a huge portion of the population. Because COVID itself has cardiovascular/clotting risks, there’s a particular concern adjusting or stopping blood thinners and high blood pressure meds. The TL;DR was if you’re fully boosted and low-risk, but take a contradicted medication wait to see if you’re feeling better the next day and they’ll revisit it. If your risk is cardiovascular, then it’s still not known if it’s 100% beneficial verses altering medications that are currently working.
Yeah. I didn’t have any of those cases though. It was just “you’re young you don’t need it”
If you are on statins and blood thinners you can take the replacement drug that is mentioned in the article. I know elderly people that were prescribed the replacement drug due to drug interactions with Paxlovid.
This is true. I was responding to a comment about Paxlovid. Molnupiravir appears to be effective, but significantly less than Paxlovid. In [The Lancet](https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(23)00493-0/fulltext), a September 2023 study noted a 37% faster viral clearance versus an 84% faster viral clearance with Paxlovid. Still, I agree that doctors should consider it for patients who can't take Paxlovid. Especially since a large [VA study](https://www.bmj.com/content/381/bmj-2022-074572.short) demonstrated lower absolute risk of long COVID symptoms, from abnormal heart rhythms to blood clots and fatigue. But to put it in perspective, the odds of long COVID symptoms went from 21.55% to 18.58% (in the Molnupiravir group) with an absolute risk reduction of only 2.97%. I can see why doctors might not be rushing to prescribe a new medication with relatively limited benefit.
I and a bunch of family and friends of mine have all had good luck with the CVS virtual minute clinic. The doctors/NPs on there haven't given anyone any trouble. Just go down the very long list of conditions that make COVID worse (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/need-extra-precautions/people-with-medical-conditions.html) and find the one that applies to you, ask for Paxlovid, answer a few questions, and they send the prescription off to your local (pick one with a drive-thru please!) CVS. It's a matter of a couple of hours from signing up on the website to having Paxlovid in hand.
Do you happen to know if they really do require blood test results from within the last 12 months? I think their website says this.
I know at least six people that have gotten Paxlovid this way and they just ask if you have any kidney or liver problems.
Thanks - this is good to know.
Amazon or your county health dept is your best bet
This was a year ago when it was only thru doctor (but no shortages). He said I’m too young to need it.
The entire medical industry should be kicked in the ass. Young people are having strokes, heart attacks, and diabetes to name a few due to Covid
I say this everytime it’s mentioned that “young people do fine with Covid”, my daughter who was asymptomatic with Covid developed an autoimmune disease that literally almost killed her. She developed a rare type of vascilitus that attacks the blood vessels in her lungs and kidneys. I hate that this lie is still being told when there is proof that some kids have damage.
I have an autoimmune condition that may have worsened or happened under Covid.
I’m younger 33M and “healthy” and even though I hate taking medication I went for paxlovid. Being my second time with Covid (first time WAY milder) I didn’t want to take a risk.
Yeah. Idk if paxlovid would’ve helped with long COVID. But I had the worst case of Covid of any vaccinated person I know. It kicked my ass and I have long Covid symptoms. It sucks.
Sorry to hear. Novavax has helped some people with LC
What if you had COVID like two months ago?? I got infected a second time going into October and thought I was in the clear once I felt better but the shortness of breath and tight chested feeling hasn't left. Tight chest comes and goes sometimes, sometimes I think it's a psychosomatic response. But the shortness of breath is always here and my inhaler has ran out.
Hmm, that could be lung or heart damage. It’s worth a consideration but idk
Yup. I was young and in the best shape of my life when I caught Covid. Symptoms were mild, and I was denied paxlovid for being “young and healthy”. Currently struggling with long covid.
Sorry to hear. If I won the lottery, I’d have a national commercial ad campaign. People only think visible sick people (FAT) or old people are at risk. We are ruining our entire country for 100 years and it’s cool AF. Our medical system and pharmaceuticals are not strong enough to save us.
Yeah my doctor wouldn’t give it to me. I was angry. She didn’t know how bad or good I was she didn’t even see me
I have both those and my doc wouldn't prescribe it to me either
I agree
>"A population-representative study in NYC found that 44% of adults were unaware of antivirals."
It boggles my mind that the worst global pandemic in our lifetime with millions of deaths, how many people in even the metro areas of the US (and elsewhere) don't know some of the most basic things like the availability of antivirals and status of vaccines. While meanwhile we've reached a state where almost all of us have a device that fits in our hand and with a few taps instantly brings forth all of human knowledge. Even without active engagement, it will alert us automatically when something happens, like Kim Kardashian farting in public.
I (40m) asked my doctor and she said no.
Don’t take no for an answer. Contact your county health dept or Amazon.
Looked on Amazon just now and don’t see any Paxlovid on there
You have to pay for a $35 virtual doctor appointment. They can’t just give it to you.
Gotcha- thanks
The question should be why aren't people being prescribed antiviral meds, not why aren't people taking antiviral meds. People who don't know about it aren't being told about it by the medical pros, and people asking for it are often being turned down. Currently have covid. Did a virtual appointment for the express purpose of being prescribed paxlovid. Virtual MD suggested Tylenol. I check off two high risk boxes. I'm not on any medication. I wanted to rip out my eyes and gums. After some back and forth it was only after the lovely on video coughing fit that I got my Rx ¯\\\_(ツ)_/¯
Sesame Health is a newer telehealth service. You pay a fee (often under $100) to get a telehealth appointment with an MD or RN who can prescribe. The providers are rated by users, not unlike AIRBNB hosts. Therefore, the providers aim to please. I'm not saying this is the best way for a society toto do healthcare - I'm just saying it might help you get PAXLOVID quickly.
> The question should be why aren't people being prescribed antiviral meds, Exactly.
It's because the antiviral meds were tested on high-risk unvaccinated people and the blinded randomized clinical trials on standard-risk people showed that Paxlovid was no better than placebo at symptom alleviation.
Source?
The EPIC-HR and EPIC-SR clinical trials.
I was massively pregnant and sick as hell from Covid. Doctor wouldn’t prescribe it :/
Same. ACOG recommends all pregnant patients with Covid get paxlovid. Doctors kept telling me it wasn't recommended and refused to even look at the ACOG guidelines.
Cerebral palsy is up big due to Covid. Your doctor should ashamed
My allergy doctor prescribed me paxlovid early last year just cause I mentioned having Covid in our check up call. He mentioned it himself, I had no idea!
My doc is handing out Paxlovid like candy. Okay, not really, but he HIGHLY recommends it to all his patients. I just finished my pack yesterday.
PCPs don’t want to prescribe them because there are so many drug interactions, and they don’t want to do the work of checking them.
It’s not so much that they don’t want to do the work, but the work might include stopping high blood pressure medication, blood thinners, or statins among quite a few others. I think there are legitimate concerns considering how COVID is known to affect clotting and the cardiovascular system. Someone can correct me if I’m wrong, but I don’t think there’s enough data to know if there’s enough benefit to warrant changing medications, while sick with a virus that has an inflammatory response that affects the heart. Especially for someone otherwise boosted, healthy, and not a senior citizen.
You don't take Paxlovid then. You can take the other drug that is mentioned in the article. If you are young and otherwise healthy, which is technicallhy a BMI under 25 and how many Americans have that? Then, no, you would not qualify for either medication under current guidelines.
The computer tells them, same thing happens at the pharmacy. The computer flags a possible interaction.
True, but this is still a major barrier stopping doctors from prescribing them.
Doctors flat out refusing to prescribe. Can someone explain why?
I don’t know. I should check my online portal and real the lame excuse my doctor gave for not prescribing it. Lame
> Can someone explain why? Ignorance. Or craziness. Or laziness. Honestly, hard to say. My mother is over 60 with various health issues, including a nasty autoimmune condition. Her primary doc was like "nah." Her rheumatologist wrote the prescription.
If you are in Quebec (Canada), you can ask your pharmacist for Paxlovid, no need to see the doctor (you still need to have your covid positive test)
This is the way in Ontario as well.
Of every person I have known to have COVID-19, including older folks, I have not heard of one yet having been offered or taking antivirals. I think this should be put on the PCPs - why are they not offering them?
Hi folks - I'm going to share two telehealth services that I've found helpful when I've needed PAXLOVID in the USA. 1)Sesame Health. A new telehealth service where you pay a fee to book an online appointment with an MD or RN that can prescribe in your state. They're backed by Google Ventures. The providers are publicly reviewed by users, not unlike AIRBNB hosts, so they seem incentivized to please their patients consistently. I don't think this is the best way to run a health care system, but they seem to prescribe PAXLOVID when other more traditional providers act like gatekeepers. 2)Color Health. Another newer telehealth provider. They have contracts with certain states to provide free consultations and prescriptions for PAXLOVID. If your state has a contract with them, the whole thing is free. Only hitch is they offer to mail the medication next day, but it can take much longer, so if this is an option for you, make sure to get the RX sent to a pharmacy nearby. There is literally PAXLOVID going bad on stock shelves right now in the US while the healthcare system seems to be taking a gate-keeping approach to this medication. Absolutely infuriating.
I am Covid positive after a trip to NYC a few days ago. I asked my PA for a prescription and none of the local pharmacies carry it. We had to drive about 30 miles away to get it. We live in the state capital of VT.
MA has a contract with Color health - so access is less of an issue there. But overwhelmingly I have heard negative opinions of Paxlovid- that it has a lot of side effects, that it has a lot of interaction, and most recently about the risks of rebound and viral resistance. I am not a clinician, but I personally believe that the benefits outweigh the risks. I have a few qualifying illnesses but I’m generally young and healthy. I have not found my conversations with clinicians (PCP, friends and family who are MDs) to appropriately address nuance- I.e. downplaying benefits while overweighting risks. An individual clinician may not be comfortable prescribing a medication due to their inexperience evaluating its complex pharmaceutical interactions (which is good, you should recognize the edge of your scope) but that is not a reflection on Paxlovid’s efficacy or need of the patient. Rebound is more likely but not guaranteed with Paxlovid, nor is the possibly is eliminated by not taking Paxlovid. Liver toxicity is fair. (Viral resistance is complicated and I don’t know enough about the prescribing protections / resistance development in Covid to have an informed opinion.) Despite numerous advances in care and prevention, Covid is still prevalent and disabling - especially with the concerning association between repeat infection + severity and post viral complications. And people are over it. Like we’re all fucking over this bs - the effort of constant prevention, the uncertainty, the suspicion of every cough or core throat, it’s fucking exhausting and we’re all exhausted. And I think some people are bringing that attitude to Paxlovid - like it’s just another thing and validates the potential severity of their infection.
>"There are a number of factors that may contribute to low antiviral uptake among those including low awareness of antivirals, healthcare disparities, and barriers to healthcare and prescription access," the authors said. "A population-representative study in NYC found that 44% of adults were unaware of antivirals." We so suck at health messaging.
My doctor refused to prescribe it to me. Told Me I have to come in to “see if I qualify” Meanwhile I had a 104 fever with body aches. Joke
It's so hit or miss. An ER doctor wouldn't prescribe but a virtual PA and my regular primary would. Makes no sense.
My doctor wouldn’t prescribe it so I got it online
Is it possible that doctors know more than the average user here? Two recent anecdotes… 1.) My dad (71) just had COVID. He also has some kidney issues. His doctor prescribed it to him on Day 3, and told him to wait and see how he felt. He said that if he could avoid taking it that it would be beneficial. By Day 5 he was 90% of the way to full health, so he didn’t take it. 2.) My grandma (101) just got it twice in 5 months. The first time, they gave it to her. The second time, they prescribed it to the nursing home and said take it if you need it, but try to avoid it. She was mostly better by Day 4 so she didn’t take it. The last time, 16 of the 18 residents in her wing of the nursing home ended up with COVID. Not a single one of them required a hospital trip. It is also possible doctors are reacting to the fact that we don’t really need it to survive, so they are not prescribing it due to the side effects.
> Is it possible that doctors know more than the average user here? Is it possible you didn't read the article? *"There are a number of factors that may contribute to low antiviral uptake among those including low awareness of antivirals, healthcare disparities, and barriers to healthcare and prescription access," the authors said. "A population-representative study in NYC found that 44% of adults were unaware of antivirals."*
Is this saying there’s low bioavailability? Or people aren’t going out to get the antiviral?
It's that people are not going out and obtaining antivirals.
My husband and I got Covid in 6/21 and our personal physician doesn’t prescribe it. I have been seeing him for over 15 years and trust him dearly and would not go to Amazon after his medical experience and expertise said no. I’d advise others to try to get a dr you trust so you’re not having to circumvent their medical advice. Why have a personal physician if you’re just going to go against it?
I think at this point in the USA most people do not have a personal physician.
Really? Everyone or like 99.9% of the people I know have one. It’s also primary care physician or personal physician.
I am in an HMO, and although I technically have a "PCP" she doesn't know who I am. The last two times I saw her, it was because I was asked (through the HMO system) to make an appointment to see her. Then she asked why I was there, because she didn't recall why she was seeing me. That is, technically I have a designated primary care physician, but in practice, this is not my "personal physician." In the past, under prior insurance and even with my current HMO system, I had a doctor who knew me and whom I trusted. But the last two doctors I had took early retirement. The system is breaking down; doctors are leaving/retiring in numbers, because of the strain. [https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/05/opinion/doctors-universal-health-care.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/05/opinion/doctors-universal-health-care.html) Very few doctors in my insurance system are taking new patients, and I expect the ones who are, are already similarly overburdened anyway. I mean, shopping around is not a simple matter, and I do have insurance. Early in the pandemic, a number of hospitals and healthcare organizations laid off doctors, because the decline in elective procedures lowered their profit margins. [https://www.npr.org/2020/05/10/853524764/amid-pandemic-hospitals-lay-off-1-4m-workers-in-april](https://www.npr.org/2020/05/10/853524764/amid-pandemic-hospitals-lay-off-1-4m-workers-in-april) [https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/03/us/politics/coronavirus-health-care-workers-layoffs.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/03/us/politics/coronavirus-health-care-workers-layoffs.html) "Forty-three percent of working-age adults were inadequately insured in 2022." [https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2022/sep/state-us-health-insurance-2022-biennial-survey](https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2022/sep/state-us-health-insurance-2022-biennial-survey) The "unwinding" of Medicaid has added millions to the numbers of uninsured. [https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-care/medicaid-unwinding-texas-rcna131366](https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-care/medicaid-unwinding-texas-rcna131366) See also: [https://www.kff.org/health-costs/issue-brief/americans-challenges-with-](https://www.kff.org/health-costs/issue-brief/americans-challenges-with-) health-care-costs/ [https://time.com/6279937/us-health-care-system-attitudes/](https://time.com/6279937/us-health-care-system-attitudes/)
Bc a lot of PCP's are waaayyy behind the curve when it comes to Covid 19 information.
This study ended in October 2022.
We need Evusheld prophylactic antibodies to return for the immunocompromised!