And now, in news nobody ever asked about, I feel the need to remark that Descovy (my PrEP medicine) is packaged pretty damn awfully.

Each pill is individually wrapped in a blister cell. Not only this, but peeling back the label works only half the time. Also, each blister contains a little slab, probably to protect the pill from breakage when you push on it hard to pop it out.

In addition, each pill is numbered. Why? It is not like taking it is optional.

Can someone who works in pill production tell me why this is a good packaging method???? To me, it appears both wasteful and annoying.

#Descovy #PrEP #packaging #medication

How is this not market manipulation?

"Gilead settles 5 more Descovy patent feuds, pushing copycats to its PrEP successor out to 2031"

Their patent is due to expire next year, but they've effectively strong-armed generic drug manufacturers into holding off for 6 more years before introducing cheaper, generic PrEP.

https://www.fiercepharma.com/pharma/gilead-settles-descovy-patent-feuds-five-more-generics-makers-pushing-copycats-its-prep

#HIV #PrEP #antiTrust #Descovy #marketManipulation

I tried to go on Truvada over a year ago and the gastrointestinal side effects were so bad that I gave up after six weeks.

The good news is a month ago I decided to try again with Descovy and it has been soooo much better. I had maybe two days of noticeable discomfort, two weeks of very subtle discomfort, and since then I’ve been totally fine. And that’s coming from someone who gets extremely anxious when feeling even a tiny bit nauseous.

I’m also lucky to have very good health insurance, but in my case Descovy isn’t typically covered. However, my physician was able to get it approved because of my previous side effects. #PrEP #truvada #descovy