Your Patients Are Struggling to Find Corlanor — Here's How to Help

If you prescribe Ivabradine for heart failure patients, you've likely received calls from patients (or their pharmacies) reporting that Corlanor is unavailable. This is a recurring challenge with specialty cardiac medications, and it can lead to treatment interruptions that put patients at risk.

This guide provides practical, actionable steps your practice can take to help patients maintain access to Ivabradine — from pharmacy selection to workflow integration.

Current Availability Landscape

Ivabradine is not in an FDA-listed shortage as of 2026. The availability challenge stems from its specialty status:

• Small patient population means low per-pharmacy demand
• Specialty distribution channels that many retail pharmacies don't use
• Brand-name cost ($450-$600/month) discourages pharmacy stocking
• Generic Ivabradine ($80-$250/month) is more widely stocked but still not universal

For a detailed analysis, see our provider shortage briefing.

Why Patients Can't Find It

Understanding the patient experience helps you provide better guidance:

The Typical Patient Journey

1. Patient receives Ivabradine prescription at your office
2. Patient goes to their usual pharmacy (often a large chain)
3. Pharmacy says "we don't carry that" or "it's not in stock"
4. Patient calls 2-3 more pharmacies with the same result
5. Patient calls your office, frustrated and potentially running out of their current supply
6. Days pass; treatment gap occurs

This cycle is predictable — and preventable. By front-loading the pharmacy identification step at the point of prescribing, you can eliminate most of this friction.

What Providers Can Do: 5 Practical Steps

Step 1: Maintain a Pharmacy Reference List

Create and maintain a list of 3-5 pharmacies in your service area that reliably stock Ivabradine. Include:

• At least one independent pharmacy with specialty ordering capability
• At least one specialty pharmacy that ships directly to patients
• Your practice's preferred mail-order pharmacy option
• Any hospital-affiliated outpatient pharmacy near your practice

Share this list with patients at the time of prescribing — don't wait for them to encounter problems. Print it on a card or include it in their after-visit summary.

Step 2: Use Medfinder to Check Real-Time Availability

When a patient calls reporting they can't find Ivabradine, your staff can use Medfinder to quickly search for pharmacies with current stock near the patient's location. This turns a 30-minute phone chain into a 2-minute search.

Consider bookmarking medfinder.com/providers on workstations where staff handle pharmacy callbacks.

Step 3: Prescribe for Generic Substitution

Unless there's a documented clinical reason for brand-name Corlanor, write prescriptions allowing generic Ivabradine substitution. This:

• Broadens the pharmacy network that can fill the prescription
• Reduces patient cost (generic is 50-80% less expensive)
• Reduces prior authorization friction with some payers

Generic Ivabradine is available in the same 5 mg and 7.5 mg tablet strengths and is AB-rated to Corlanor.

Step 4: Front-Load Prior Authorization

Since most payers require PA for Ivabradine, submit the prior authorization before the patient goes to the pharmacy. Key documentation to include upfront:

• Most recent echocardiogram showing LVEF ≤35%
• Resting heart rate ≥70 bpm in sinus rhythm (from visit documentation)
• Current beta-blocker regimen with dose and duration, or documented contraindication
• NYHA functional class

Many EHR systems support PA submission directly. Having a templated PA letter for Ivabradine saves significant staff time.

Step 5: Provide Bridge Supplies When Possible

If your practice receives manufacturer samples of Corlanor, keep a small supply available for situations where:

• A patient is starting Ivabradine and pharmacy access will take a few days
• A patient's pharmacy is temporarily out of stock
• A patient is transitioning between insurance plans

Even a 7-14 day bridge supply can prevent a treatment gap that leads to symptom worsening or hospitalization.

Alternatives When Ivabradine Is Unavailable

If a patient truly cannot access Ivabradine for an extended period, clinical alternatives to consider:

• Beta-blocker dose optimization: If the patient isn't on maximal tolerated beta-blocker, uptitration can provide additional heart rate reduction
• GDMT review: Ensure the patient is on all four pillars — beta-blocker, ARNI (or ACEi/ARB), SGLT2 inhibitor, and MRA
• Digoxin: Can provide rate control, though without mortality benefit. Consider if heart rate remains elevated despite optimized beta-blocker

For a patient-facing guide on alternatives, see alternatives to Corlanor.

Workflow Tips for Your Practice

At the Point of Prescribing

• Hand the patient your pharmacy reference list for Ivabradine
• Mention that it's a specialty medication and their usual pharmacy may need to order it
• Submit PA at the same visit
• Consider e-prescribing directly to a known-stocking pharmacy

For Refill Management

• Flag Ivabradine patients for proactive refill outreach (e.g., call patients at the 21-day mark of a 30-day supply)
• Encourage patients to use mail-order for 90-day supplies when insurance allows
• Add a note in the patient's chart documenting which pharmacy successfully fills their Ivabradine

For Patient Callbacks

• Create a standard script for staff handling "I can't find my medication" calls
• Include Medfinder search as a first step in the callback workflow
• Authorize staff to transfer prescriptions to alternative pharmacies identified through the search
• Keep Amgen Safety Net Foundation contact information (1-888-762-6436) readily available for patients with financial barriers

Cost Navigation

Integrate cost conversations into the prescribing workflow:

• Commercially insured: Offer Amgen Savings Card information (copay as low as $10-$25/month)
• Uninsured/underinsured: Initiate Amgen Safety Net Foundation application
• Medicare: Assist with Extra Help enrollment if applicable; explore generic pricing with discount cards
• Refer patients to our savings guide or the provider cost navigation guide

Final Thoughts

Ivabradine availability challenges are a logistics problem, not a supply problem — and logistics problems have logistics solutions. By integrating pharmacy identification, proactive PA submission, and patient education into your prescribing workflow, you can prevent most treatment interruptions before they happen.

Tools like Medfinder make it easy for your staff to quickly identify stocked pharmacies, and manufacturer programs can address cost barriers. With a few workflow adjustments, you can keep your heart failure patients on this important guideline-directed therapy.

For more Corlanor resources, see our provider shortage briefing, drug interaction guide, and provider cost navigation guide.