How Much Does Depo-Provera Cost?

Depo-Provera, an injection used to prevent pregnancies and considered to be one of the many birth control options on the market, can offer effective birth control for up to three months.

Commonly used as an alternative to the traditional IUD, Depo-Provera is known as the most popular branded birth control shot and is recommended for those who do not want to take a birth control pill every day, are breastfeeding or even for women who want to avoid estrogen for various health reasons.

“The needle” (CC BY 2.0) by Dr. Partha Sarathi Sahana

How much does Depo-Provera cost?

• The costs of the Depo-Provera shot will depend on a few factors, including your health insurance coverage, the doctor you use and your geographical region.  For just the shot at a local doctor’s office, the costs can range anywhere from $50 to $155+ without insurance, including the doctor office visitation fee for the first.  Seeing you will need a shot every three months for it to be effective, it’s best to budget this amount every 90 days, with the subsequent shots costing about 20 to 30 percent less.
• Clear Choice Health recommends budgeting anywhere from $45 to $100, but they also recommend you contact the doctor’s office to see if any hidden fees exist.  For instance, one doctor’s office they talked to noted the shot would cost $55, but the doctor’s visit fee would cost another $95, bringing the total to $150.
• The price of just the prescription, according to the GoodRX.com deals, ranged anywhere from $40 to $89, depending on the pharmacy you used.  This fee would not include the doctor’s office examination fee, just the cost of the prescription itself.
• CVS, via its official Minute Clinic price list, charges a total of $109 for the injection.
• As for insurance coverage, Depo-Provera is covered by the Affordable Care Act as it is an FDA approved birth control method, but this isn’t always the case for Depo-Provera as insurance companies may only cover certain brands.  To be certain, talk with your health insurance company and your local doctor’s office to see what you may be responsible for.  In most cases, as long as your insurance company covers the shot, most people end up paying a small office visit co-pay and nothing else.

How does Depo-Provera work?

• The shot works in multiple ways.  For one, it suppresses ovulation, preventing eggs from releasing, which prevents the embryo from forming.  Secondly, it helps increase the thickness of the cervical mucus, which in essence, makes it harder for the sperm to reach the fallopian tubes.  Lastly, the injection will alter the lining of the womb, making it difficult for the embryo to implant.
• To get the shot, you will have to arrange an appointment with your doctor to ensure you’re maximizing the efficiency of the injection.  If you receive the injection within the first five days of the start of your menstrual cycle, then it’s said to be effective 24 hours later and it’s highly recommended the first injection is only given within the first five days of your period.  If you’re injected any other time outside of this time frame, you will need to use an additional form of contraception for the first seven days.  A Depo-Provera can be found here.
• Injections, as per Pfizer, are administered via a deep intramuscular (IM) injection in either the gluteal or deltoid muscle, rotating the site with each injection.

Depo-Provera side effects

• Acne
• Depression
• Dizziness
• Headaches
• Irregular periods/spotting
• Nervousness
• Reduce libido
• Sore breasts
• Stomach pain
• Weakness
• Weight gain

Source: Mayo Clinic

Tips to know

• Depo-Provera will not help protect you from sexually transmitted diseases such as Aids, herpes, syphilis or gonorrhea.
• If you fail to show up on time for your subsequent shots, your doctor may ask you to take a pregnancy test first before giving you the injection or advise that you take an emergency contraception if you had intercourse within the last five days, according to women-health-advice.com.
• There are two forms of Depo-Provera, with the major difference being in the dosage of DMPA.  The lower dosage, referred to as  Depo-subQ Provera 104, is injected beneath the skin, whereas the original, higher dosage shot is injected deep into the muscle.

Advertising Disclosure: This content may include referral links. Please read our disclosure policy for more info.

Average Reported Cost: $0

0 %

0 %

How much did you spend?