Medication Assistance for LGBTQ+ Patients
At UChicago Medicine, our pharmacy team works with your health care provider to make it easy for you to start and keep up your medication treatment.
Our experienced pharmacists are experts in working with LGBTQ+ patients with HIV and other infectious diseases. Some pharmacists on our specialty pharmacy team have nearly 20 years of experience helping LGBTQ+ patients access HIV treatments.
Our pharmacists understand all of the current HIV treatments and work in partnership with you and your providers.
Pharmacy Services for LGBTQ+ Patients
To make it easy for you, members of our pharmacy team work with our infectious diseases clinic. We provide:
- Medications to prevent and treat HIV (PrEP or PEP)
- Treatments for sexually transmitted infections (STIs)
We offer free delivery of your medication.
Personal Care and Support for Patients with HIV
If you have HIV, our specialty pharmacists can work with you and your care team to create a treatment plan to help lower the amount of HIV in the blood (viral load) to a level that is undetectable or not found by a test. If you are able to keep your viral load at an undetectable level, there is effectively no risk that you can transmit HIV to other people during sex. For most people, that may happen as soon as six months after you start treatment.
Our specialty pharmacists also can help you track your viral load over time to make sure that you stay undetectable.
Answers When You Need Them
We understand that your treatment plans can be complex. That is why specialty pharmacists at UChicago Medicine are here to help you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For questions or to speak with a pharmacist, call 773-834-2285.
If your provider starts you on a new medication, our pharmacists can help you understand your treatment and answer any questions you may have. Our team will meet with you in person at the clinic or follow up with you by phone after you start a new drug to make sure that your treatment is going smoothly. If you have side effects from treatment, we can help you find ways to manage them.
Help with Insurance and Paying for Medications
If you need treatment, the last thing you want to worry about is paperwork. Our experienced pharmacists understand different kinds of insurance. They can help you with your benefits so you can easily find affordable medications.
If you do not have insurance, we can work directly with drug companies and their programs to reduce the costs of medicine. We also help you gain access to medication. With grant funding, we can also get some medications for you, such as PrEP, at no cost.