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Free Nurtec ODT for Migraine Headache Relief

Long COVID and Migraines

A common post-viral long-COVID problem is persistent migraine headaches.  Although they do not seem to affect the majority of post-COVID patients, they commonly plague those who had a history of migraines before their infections. 

For those not familiar with migraines, they can be excruciating, and tend to come with nausea, sensitivity to light and sound, and various other symptoms.  Imagine the worst hangover of your life, where everything is too bright and too loud, your head feels like it is being crushed in a vice and you want to vomit.  That is pretty much me every day, year after year.

What is Nurtec ODT and How Does it Help with Migraines?

But the good news is that after trying just about every common migraine remedy without much relief, my specialist prescribed me Nurtec ODT.  Nurtec ODT comes in little white tabs that you place under your tongue and let melt/dissolve to be absorbed directly into your bloodstream.  It is commonly prescribed as an abortive, meaning you take it when you have a headache and want to stop it.  It can also be prescribed as a preventative, where you take it every other day or so to prevent the migraine from happening (but good luck getting an insurance company to pay for so many doses).

Note: I receive no compensation for sharing this and have no relationship with the makers of Nurtec beyond that of an ordinary consumer who uses it for migraine relief.

Nurtec ODT is a form of Rimegepant, a drug similar to the self-injectable Aimovig, Emgality and Ajovy.  It works by blocking calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) receptors, which interferes with the process that causes/transmits migraine pain.  Without getting too technical, this method of operation has relatively few side-effects and interactions making it more tolerable than some other options.

For those sensitive to tastes and nausea, it may help to know that these little tabs do not have a strong flavor and dissolve and disappear within a few minutes. Since migraines often come with intense nausea, this delivery method can be a nice way to avoid accidentally losing your pricey pain relief medicine to vomiting.  This delivery method causes the drug to reach maximum concentration in your blood in under 2 hours.

These tabs are a lifesaver for me, but they retail at about $128 per individual dose.  My specialist wants me on them every other day as a preventative, so roughly 16 tabs and $2,048 per month which adds up to over $23,000 per year.  Unsurprisingly, my insurance is not a fan of this, and has used every possible trick to prevent me from getting them.  It took about 6 months of fighting to get access to a mere 8 tabs per month for one year and when that year ended they rejected them entirely so I am back to fighting again.

How to Get Nurtec ODT for Free

On the bright side, Pfizer has a program where if your doctor sends the prescription to them, they will give eligible patients 8 free tabs a month until the insurance battle is settled once and for all.  For me, they were free with no co-pay and they just started showing up in the mail from Amazon’s Pill Pack service, which is apparently the provider Pfizer has a deal with.  While 8 tabs is only half of what I need, $1,012/month of free medication is still a big help.  Below is the link to the program, in case you or anyone you know would like to look into it for migraine relief:

https://www.nurtec-hcp.com/savings-support

That site is intended for health care providers and will not let you in unless you click the option saying that you are one, but if you struggle with migraines and are fighting insurance issues of your own, the knowledge that this program exists might trigger a helpful discussion between you and your doctor. I do not receive a commission if you use this link.

More Information about Nurtec and Rimegepant

© 2023 All rights reserved. This blog reflects the personal experience and opinions of a long COVID and CFS survivor and is not qualified medical advice. Consult a doctor for your situation.

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I invite on-topic, helpful comments from readers with free Google accounts. I am especially interested in comments that share useful tips for fighting long-COVID, Chronic Fatigue, Chronic Pain and Migraines. Off-topic comments, comments that name other sites or products without including much relevant textual explanation, and comments disparaging any person or group will be deleted. As I am trying to keep this a positive place, I may also delete comments in a despairing tone that focus only on symptom misery rather than helpful ways to combat it. Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts and helpful tips!

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