How to Help Your Patients Find Kevzara in Stock: A Provider's Guide

When you prescribe Kevzara (sarilumab), the clinical decision is the easy part. The harder part—for many of your patients—is actually getting it. Because Kevzara is a specialty biologic with no retail pharmacy distribution, no biosimilar, and significant insurance barriers, patients often find themselves in a frustrating limbo between the prescription pad and the first injection. This guide gives you concrete, actionable steps to help your patients navigate the Kevzara access process successfully.

Step 1: Confirm the Patient's Insurance Preferred Specialty Pharmacy Before Prescribing

This is the single most impactful step you can take at the point of care. Sending a Kevzara prescription to an out-of-network specialty pharmacy is one of the most common causes of delayed or denied fills. Before your office submits the prescription, have your billing coordinator or PA specialist call the patient's insurance to confirm:

Whether Kevzara requires prior authorization under this specific patient's plan

The name and phone number of the in-network specialty pharmacy for this drug

Whether any step therapy requirements apply (prior biologic failure required?)

The patient's estimated out-of-pocket cost share (before and after any applicable copay programs)

Step 2: Initiate Prior Authorization at the Time of the Visit

PA delays are the number-one reason patients wait weeks between prescription and first dose. Submitting PA documentation before or at the time of the prescribing visit—rather than after—cuts the average wait time dramatically. Your office's PA submission should include:

ICD-10 diagnosis code (RA: M05.XX or M06.XX; PMR: M35.3; pJIA: M08.XX)

Documentation of prior DMARD therapy and reason for discontinuation

Current disease activity score (DAS28-ESR or DAS28-CRP, CDAI, or SDAI)

Current labs: CBC with differential (ANC ≥2000 cells/mm3 required), PLT count, ALT/AST, negative TB test within 12 months

Letter of medical necessity if step therapy exception is being requested

Step 3: Enroll Patients in KevzaraConnect at the Visit

KevzaraConnect is Sanofi's manufacturer support program and is one of the most underutilized tools for improving Kevzara access. For your patients, it provides:

Copay card: Commercially insured patients may pay $0/month, up to $15,000/year annual maximum (not valid for Medicare, Medicaid, or federal programs)

30-day free trial supply: One-time bridge supply through TheraCom while PA is being processed; requires a completed voucher and a 30-day prescription faxed to TheraCom (345 International Blvd, Ste 200, Brooks, KY 40109)

Patient assistance program: Free medication for uninsured or underinsured patients who meet income criteria

PA navigation support: Case managers can assist with PA submission, denial appeals, and status tracking

To enroll, call KevzaraConnect at 1-844-538-9272 or visit kevzara.com/hcp. Provider enrollment on behalf of patients requires completing a Patient Enrollment Form and attaching a current prescription.

Step 4: Use medfinder to Locate Which Specialty Pharmacy Can Fill It

Even when the right specialty pharmacy has been identified, confirming they can actually fill the prescription on a specific timeline requires phone calls that patients often can't make effectively. medfinder.com/providers is a service specifically designed for this challenge. Patients provide their medication, dosage, and location—medfinder calls pharmacies on their behalf and texts back a list of pharmacies that can fill the prescription. Recommending medfinder to struggling patients is a simple but effective step.

Step 5: Provide a Bridge Prescription When Appropriate

For patients who are symptomatic while waiting for Kevzara PA approval and pharmacy dispensing, consider a short-term bridge to manage inflammation and pain. Options include:

Low-dose prednisone (5–10 mg/day) for up to 2–4 weeks while PA is pending (especially appropriate for PMR patients who already respond to steroids)

NSAIDs — noting the increased GI perforation risk when combined with Kevzara; counsel patients accordingly and monitor closely once Kevzara initiates

Continuing current DMARD therapy (e.g., methotrexate) during the PA process to maintain some disease control, planning to continue or discontinue once Kevzara is initiated per clinical judgment

Step 6: Follow Up Proactively Within 5 Business Days

Many PA processes stall silently—the payer sends additional information requests that never make it to your office, or the specialty pharmacy is waiting on a document that your staff doesn't know is outstanding. Building a 5-business-day follow-up protocol into your office workflow catches these silent delays before they become weeks-long gaps in therapy.

Have your PA coordinator or medical assistant call both the payer's PA line and the specialty pharmacy on day 5 after submission to confirm status. This simple follow-up step catches the majority of common stall points before they cost the patient another week of waiting.

Provider Quick Reference: Kevzara Access Checklist

Confirm insurance preferred specialty pharmacy before sending Rx

Submit PA at time of visit with complete labs and DMARD failure documentation

Enroll patient in KevzaraConnect (1-844-538-9272) for copay card and trial supply

Direct patient to medfinder if they're having trouble locating or confirming availability

Prescribe appropriate bridge therapy for symptomatic patients awaiting PA approval

Follow up on PA status at 5 business days post-submission