Many CVS drug plans will cover over-the-counter birth control pill at no cost

NBC Chicago shared the news that many health insurance plans using CVS Caremark as their pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) can begin offering $0-cost Opill without requiring a prescription to process at the pharmacy register.

Opill, the first-ever over-the-counter (OTC) daily birth control pill, will be added to CVS Caremark’s “preventive services oral contraceptives list” and will be covered at no cost for many health plan sponsors (like the plan offered by an employer to their staff). Coverage and co-pays for Opill will still be determined by each individual health plan and sponsor.

Pharmacy benefit managers like CVS Caremark work with pharmacies (like CVS), manufacturers (like Perrigo), and insurance companies to choose which medications are available on drug formularies (the list of medications covered by individual health insurance plans) and to determine what the final price to the customer will be at the register by negotiating discounts with the pharmaceutical companies.