“DC Health Announces Telehealth Antiviral Treatment Program (Paxlovid) for COVID-19”

photo by Radio Alfa

From DC Health:

“Today, DC Health announced a new partnership with Color Health to offer a free COVID-19 treatment access program via telehealth in the District.

DC Health is partnering with Color Health to provide an additional resource to accessing Paxlovid, an antiviral medication to eligible DC residents. This program is available to all District residents 18 years or older who have tested positive for COVID-19 and who are at a higher risk for severe disease, including being over age 65, cancer, diabetes, hypertension, obesity, current or former smoker, among others.

Paxlovid is an oral antiviral medicine used to treat mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in individuals 12 years and older who have tested positive for COVID-19 that have an increased risk of severe disease and have developed COVID-19 symptoms within the last 5 days. Paxlovid shortens the duration of symptoms and lowers the risk of an individual developing worse symptoms from COVID-19 or being admitted to the hospital. This program is not for medical emergencies.

To determine eligibility to receive Paxlovid, residents will need to request a telehealth consultation through Color Health by completing a short questionnaire. This questionnaire determines eligibility for a telehealth visit and those determined eligible will be connected with a provider within 5 to 30 minutes. During the telehealth visit, a provider will determine if the resident is eligible for this treatment and walk the resident through treatment information. If a resident is found to eligible during this telehealth visit, they can choose either home delivery or pharmacy pick-up from a preferred pharmacy.

This telehealth service is free for District residents through the Color partnership with DC Health and Paxlovid is provided at no cost. This service is available from 9am-7pm, 7 days a week.

To request a telehealth consultation for the COVID-19 antiviral treatment Paxlovid, residents will need to visit color.com/covid-19-treatment-dc.

About Color Health
Color Health partners with governments, employers, and other institutions to deliver public health programs with access points that can exist anywhere. Color has supported more than 10,000 healthcare access sites across the country, and the company has supported COVID-19 testing and public health vaccine delivery to millions of individuals since 2020. Color provides effective public health programs directly where public life happens.

While this telehealth service is new to the District, therapeutics are still available at select pharmacies in Washington, DC including retail pharmacies and healthcare facility outpatient pharmacy locations as well as locations involved in the Test-to-Treat program. More information can be found at coronavirus.dc.gov/page/covid-19-therapeutics.”