What is the difference between McKinley Health Center Fee and Insurance coverages?

 

  • When you receive services from McKinley Health Center, you are receiving that benefit because you have paid a fee to the University of Illinois, the same as you pay a library fee or campus recreation fee to have access to those services. McKinley Pharmacy is NOT able to bill insurance. Your insurance gives you coverage outside of McKinley Health Center. However, we have designated copays similar to that of an insurance policy and often are less expensive than insurance copays. If you believe your insurance copay is indeed cheaper, you may transfer your prescription to an outside pharmacy that is able to process insurance. However, if your insurance requires prescriptions to be written by in-network providers, orders written by McKinley providers may not be covered.
  • The Health Service Fee is assessed to your account by semester. Often during the summer session students do not enroll in on-campus courses and thus are not required to pay the fee. If a student has refills on file at McKinley Pharmacy they may purchase refills for a limited time at an extension price (a higher price) without having paid the Health Service Fee. Please refer to the McKinley Pharmacy Formulary for additional information.
  • For further information about Student Insurance and the McKinley Health Service fee, visit https://mckinley.illinois.edu/parents/service-fees

 

How do I transfer a prescription?

Transferring a prescription FROM an outside pharmacy TO McKinley Pharmacy:

  • The pharmacy prefers that you use McKinley’s transfer page to transfer your prescription in. The transfer page is intended for transferring prescriptions to our pharmacy, not for transferring them out to another pharmacy. Go to the McKinley Pharmacy Refill/Transfer Application and fill out the prescription transfer form. You may log back into the app to review the status of your request. It will state if your prescription is ready or if you are requesting a medication that has no refills, McKinley Pharmacy does not stock, or it has a charge.

    OR

  • Call the pharmacy to give us the name and phone number of the pharmacy where you last picked up your prescription and we’ll call them to transfer the prescription in.

 
Transferring a prescription FROM McKinley Pharmacy TO an outside pharmacy:

  • Contact an outside pharmacy where you want to pick up your medication and give them your name, birthdate, our pharmacy name & phone number (217-333-2710 ), and the name of the medication you want transferred. They’ll call our pharmacy to transfer the prescription.
How do I know if my prescription has refills, is ready for pick up, or has a cost?

• Go to the McKinley Pharmacy Refill/Transfer Application which is also accessible through the pharmacy page on McKinley’s website or MyMcKinley. It will state if your prescription is ready or if you are requesting a medication that has no refills, McKinley Pharmacy does not stock, or has a charge. The app is only accessible to students paying the Health Service Fee for the current semester. If you have not paid the fee you may call the pharmacy (217-333-2710) to inquire about the status of your prescription.
• There are many factors that affect how long it takes your doctor to send us your prescription. Please allow at least 24 hours from the time you talked to you doctor before calling to check on your prescription, unless it's an emergency.

How do I get the emergency contraception (Morning-after) pill?

• Over-the-counter emergency contraception is available through McKinley Pharmacy to University of Illinois students who are covered under the Health Service Fee. Eligible students may receive one dose of My Way (Levonorgestrel 1.5mg) for free per semester, then $15 for each dose thereafter. Brand name Plan B is available for purchase at $30 per dose. University of Illinois students who have not paid the Health Service Fee may obtain My Way for $15 or Plan B One-Step for $30 for each dose. Supply limits may apply. The sooner emergency contraception is taken the more effective it is. You may want to refer to the handout, Plan B Emergency Contraception (Morning After Pills) for additional information. If you are out of town and/or McKinley services are not available, most pharmacies have emergency contraception available for purchase.
• To consult about the use of other emergency contraception, you can contact Women's Health office nurse by calling (217)-244-2501

What birth control pills are available through McKinley Pharmacy and how much do they cost?

A list of birth control on the McKinley Pharmacy formulary and pricing may be found here. If you do not see your brand on the list, it’s possible your doctor’s order allows your order to be substituted with a generic equivalent. If you need assistance in finding your generic equivalent please call pharmacy at 217-333-2710.
 
The number of cycles you may receive at any given time is determined by:

  • How the prescription was written by your doctor.
  • How many refills remain on your prescription.
  • How many cycles you have already received for the semester and the amount of time left in the semester since the Health Service Fee is paid by the semester.