Nurx Offers Free Birth Control with Promo Code 'AlternativeFacts'

  SAN FRANCISCO - 02/01/2017 (PRESS RELEASE JET)

Nurx is a telemedicine startup, based in San Francisco, focused on making birth control as well as Truvada for PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis) more accessible to everyone through an app. With the app, users can get a prescription from a doctor and have their medication delivered right to their door. Nurx is offering free birth control to new users who use the promo code ‘AlternativeFacts’ during the month of February. 

Just hours after taking office, President Donald Trump signed an executive order seeking a 'prompt repeal' of the Affordable Care Act, also known as 'Obamacare.' Repealing the Affordable Care Act would cause 24 million people to lose health coverage by 2021 and would have devastating consequences on women’s health.

The Affordable Care Act, requires health plans to cover at least one form of the 18 FDA-approved contraceptives. This coverage provides birth control to women without any outside costs. A recent study by the Journal of American Medical Association, found that 69 percent of Americans support the Affordable Care Act's contraception mandate, and for good reason.

According to the National Women’s Law Center, roughly 55 million women now receive contraception and other preventive services with no out-of-pocket costs because of the Affordable Care Act. In 2015, researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania found that the ACA is saving oral contraceptive users an average of $255 a year and $248 for women with an IUD.  

“Donald Trump’s first executive order reaffirmed that he is intent on repealing the Affordable Care Act. We hope that in doing so he ensures that women would retain access to free birth control and other preventative services. Anything less would be reckless.” says co-founder and CEO of Nurx, Hans Gangeskar. “If the ACA is repealed, we at Nurx will continue to serve as a low-cost option for women. Since December, we have also made birth control free for new users of our service.”

Free Birth Control Promotion:
Using the promo code ‘AlternativeFacts’, new users will get $45 of credit toward birth control through Nurx. To get the deal, users must visit Nurx.com, create a Nurx account, pick their brand of choice, and enter promo code ‘AlternativeFacts’ at checkout. The promotion ends February 28, 2017.

According to Nurx’s Medical Director, Dr. Jessica Knox, "Women should not have to jump through unnecessary hoops just to access birth control. The pill remains available by prescription only throughout the United States today, but with our app, we’re making birth control more accessible than ever."

How the App Works for Birth Control:

• User Chooses Brand - The user selects their brand, answers a few questions, enters their insurance and shipping info.

• Doctor Reviews Submission - a Nurx partner physician reviews the request and writes a prescription.

• Delivered to Customer - The prescribed medication is delivered right to the user's door.

“Women should be able to access health care on their own terms,” explains Dr. Edvard Engesaeth, a medical doctor and cofounder of Nurx.

The app works for both new and existing birth control users and the service and shipping are often free to anyone with health care coverage. For uninsured patients, Nurx waives the consultation fee. The delivery is still free and Nurx can connect the user with some brands for as low as $15.

Truvada for PrEP Through Nurx
A recent report in the Oxford Journal found PrEP to be as safe as taking Aspirin, however, access to this revolutionary drug is a problem for many at-risk people today. According to the CDC, 1.2 million people should be on Truvada yet, as of 2015, only 21,000 were on the drug.

Federal health officials estimate that about one third of primary care doctors and nurses are actually unaware of Truvada, further impeding access to the drug. “Unfortunately, access is still a major problem for many who need and want to be on PrEP. We are changing the game in the fight against HIV by making PrEP more accessible through our app,” said Jayne Gagliano, PrEP Services Coordinator at Nurx. “We stand in solidarity with everyone participating in the Women’s Marches. Everyone should have access to quality reproductive health care services regardless of income, location or education.”

About Nurx
Nurx is a telemedicine startup based in San Francisco, CA, focusing on making Truvada for PrEP and birth control more accessible to everyone through their app. With the app, users can get a prescription from a doctor and have their medication delivered right to their door. The app is currently available in California, New York, Washington state, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Virginia, and Washington, DC. Nurx also plans to expand to more than 20 states in the coming weeks. With the rapid expansion, Nurx is currently hiring full-stack, front-end, and dev-ops engineers, who are also passionate about increasing access to health care. Nurx engineers will be foundational architects in building the tools and systems needed in a new model of health care access around the world. For more information, visit Nurx.com.