IgA nephropathy and C3G drug assistance in 2026: Fabhalta, Filspari, Tarpeyo, Vanrafia and Empaveli
Two Novartis programmes print a yearly copay limit and a free 12-month bridge; three other medicines print neither, and the foundation fund that lists them is closed. Here is the door for each insurance type, and what we could not read.
The two Novartis medicines, Fabhalta and Vanrafia, are the only ones of the five IgA nephropathy and C3G medicines whose programmes print a yearly dollar limit ($20,000 and up to $15,000) and a free 12-month bridge; Filspari, Tarpeyo and Empaveli print neither on the pages we read, and the one independent fund that lists these medicines (HealthWell IgA nephropathy, $9,000 maximum award) was closed to new patients on 26 October 2026.
Method: we read each brand’s own site and savings pages and HealthWell’s fund page on 26 October 2026, recording what each prints and what it leaves out, and counted each brand’s listings in CMS’s September 2026 Part D formulary file. How we built thisQuick answer: what help exists for IgA nephropathy and C3G medicines?
By insurance type:
- Commercial insurance: Fabhalta Co-Pay Plus pays up to $20,000 a year plus $1,000 for vaccinations; Vanrafia Co-Pay Plus has a combined annual limit up to $15,000. Both add a free bridge of up to 12 months if coverage is delayed or denied.
- Tarpeyo: the TARPEYO Touchpoints copay programme says as little as $0 for commercially insured, approved patients; it prints no yearly figure.
- Filspari and Empaveli: their sites name no copay terms on the pages we read; call the sponsor line printed on each site.
- Medicare, Medicaid, VA, TRICARE or no insurance: the copay offers do not apply. Fabhalta and Vanrafia are on the Novartis Patient Assistance Foundation list (1-800-277-2254).
- Independent fund: HealthWell’s IgA nephropathy fund was closed to new patients on 26 October 2026.
Which IgA nephropathy and C3G medicines are on brand sites in 2026?
IgA nephropathy (IgAN) and C3 glomerulopathy (C3G) are kidney diseases; the medicines below are named on their own brand sites for one or both. Not every medicine here is a complement inhibitor, so this page does not use that label for the group; it follows the brand sites’ own indication wording and compares cost-help programmes only. Which medicine fits you is a question for your kidney specialist.
| Medicine | Maker | Kidney use, as the brand site states it | Brand page read |
|---|---|---|---|
| FABHALTA (iptacopan) | Novartis | Adults with primary IgAN at risk of disease worsening; adults with C3G to reduce proteinuria; also adults with PNH | fabhalta.com |
| VANRAFIA (atrasentan) | Novartis | Adults with primary IgAN at risk of their disease getting worse quickly, to reduce proteinuria. First FDA approval 2 April 2025 (Drugs@FDA) | vanrafia.com |
| FILSPARI (sparsentan) | Travere Therapeutics | Adults with IgAN; people 8 years and older with FSGS without nephrotic syndrome | filspari.com |
| TARPEYO (budesonide) | Calliditas Therapeutics | Adults with primary IgAN at risk of disease worsening; a 9-month once-daily course | tarpeyo.com |
| EMPAVELI (pegcetacoplan) | Brand site copyrighted to Biogen | People 12 years and older with C3G or primary IC-MPGN to reduce proteinuria; adults with PNH | empaveli.com |
What does each maker’s programme pay?
Fabhalta. Novartis’s Co-Pay Plus covers patients with private insurance with an annual benefit limit of $20,000 per calendar year for the drug and up to $1,000 for qualifying vaccination costs; the limit resets each year. It is not valid under Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, VA, DoD or any other federal or state programme, or where the patient is not using insurance. The same page says Co-Pay Plus can provide up to 12 months of free Fabhalta while coverage is pursued, for patients with a prior authorization requirement or an initial denial, who must submit a prior authorization or appeal within the first 45 days of enrolment. Novartis Patient Support: 833-993-2242.
Vanrafia. Co-Pay Plus has a combined annual limit up to $15,000 across the card and rebate for patients with private insurance, with the same government exclusions, and the same 12-month bridge and 45-day filing clock. Novartis says 94% of Vanrafia prescriptions filled have a $0 out-of-pocket cost for IgAN patients, a claim it makes without a stated period, and prints a 30-day list price of $14,291.09. Novartis Patient Support: 844-482-6723.
Tarpeyo. TARPEYO Touchpoints says eligible patients may pay as little as $0 for their prescription if they are a US resident with a valid prescription and are commercially insured and approved; the page prints no yearly maximum. Tarpeyo ships only from the specialty pharmacy PANTHERx Rare Pharmacy, and Touchpoints care navigators answer 1-833-444-8277.
Filspari and Empaveli. We read both brand sites in full and found no copay, bridge or free-drug terms. We do not print terms we could not read; ask the sponsor for them directly.
How do you get the drug free if you are uninsured or have Medicare?
The Novartis Patient Assistance Foundation lists Fabhalta and Vanrafia on its medication list. It says it helps people who are uninsured, or who have government insurance and cannot afford their out-of-pocket costs; a Medicare patient must also not qualify for Extra Help (1-800-277-2254). The pages we read print no dollar income limit; our income limits comparison records 400% of the poverty level ($63,840 for one person) from the programme dataset checked 19 October 2026. We found no free-drug programme named for Filspari, Tarpeyo or Empaveli on the pages read. Our Extra Help guide explains the Medicare side.
Is there foundation help?
HealthWell’s IgA nephropathy fund read “Closed” on 26 October 2026, temporarily closed to new patients for lack of funding. When open it offers prescription copay help or Medicare Part B premium help, with a maximum award of $9,000 and a household income limit of 500% of the federal poverty level; Fabhalta, Filspari and atrasentan are on its covered-treatment list, and current grants stay active for their 12 months. HealthWell requires insurance that covers part of the cost, and its fund list has no C3G or PNH fund. NORD (the National Organization for Rare Disorders) runs RareCare programmes for medication, premium and copay help and an emergency fund (its page lists 112 programmes); its helpline is 1-800-999-6673. Our HealthWell guide lists the foundation’s other funds.
How do plans cover them?
These are specialty medicines, and most Part D plans did not list them in the 2026 file: Vanrafia 15 of 328, Tarpeyo 19 of 328, Empaveli 27 of 328, Fabhalta 29 of 328 and Filspari 33 of 328.
What should you ask when you call?
Medicine: ______________ Insurance type: ______________ Date: ________ Commercial insurance: [ ] Is the copay offer open to me? What is the yearly limit? What ends it? [ ] Is there a bridge if my insurer delays or denies it? (Fabhalta and Vanrafia: up to 12 months) [ ] By what date must the prior authorization or appeal be filed? (45 days at Fabhalta and Vanrafia) Medicare, Medicaid, VA, TRICARE, or no insurance: [ ] Is the free-drug foundation open for this medicine, and what income limit applies? [ ] Medicare: do I need an Extra Help denial first? Numbers on the sponsors' own pages (26 Oct 2026): Fabhalta 833-993-2242 | Vanrafia 844-482-6723 | Tarpeyo Touchpoints 1-833-444-8277 Novartis Patient Assistance Foundation 1-800-277-2254 | NORD helpline 1-800-999-6673 Filspari and Empaveli: no programme number printed on the pages read
What should you do, by situation?
- If you have commercial insuranceEnrol in the maker’s offer the day your prescriber chooses the medicine; for Fabhalta and Vanrafia ask about the 12-month bridge before the first fill and diarise the 45-day filing clock.
- If you have MedicareNo copay offer applies. Ask your plan whether the medicine is listed and what prior authorization it needs, and ask the Novartis foundation about Fabhalta or Vanrafia.
- If you are uninsuredStart with the foundation for your medicine and check Medicaid eligibility at the same time.
- If your medicine is Filspari or EmpaveliCall the sponsor line first: we found no terms to print, so the sponsor is the only source for programme rules.
We read each programme’s own eligibility page, application form or terms on 26 October 2026 (Fabhalta, Vanrafia, Filspari, Tarpeyo, Empaveli, the Novartis Patient Assistance Foundation medication list, HealthWell’s IgA nephropathy fund page and NORD), and drew on CMS’s September 2026 Part D formulary file for the listing counts and Drugs@FDA for the Vanrafia approval date. We did not apply to any programme. Where a programme does not publish a figure, we say so rather than estimate it. A newer IgAN medicine, Voyxact, is not covered because we did not read a current label for it. OmniRx does not employ named credentialed reviewers; this is patient-navigation reference, not medical advice. Full policy.
Frequently asked questions
How much does the Fabhalta copay programme pay?
Novartis's Fabhalta Co-Pay Plus covers patients with private insurance with an annual benefit limit of $20,000 per calendar year, plus up to $1,000 for qualifying vaccination costs. It is not valid under Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, VA, DoD or any other federal or state programme (sponsor page read 26 October 2026).
Is there a bridge if my insurer delays Fabhalta or Vanrafia?
Yes. For patients with private insurance and a prior authorization requirement or an initial denial, Novartis says it can provide Fabhalta or Vanrafia free for up to 12 months or until coverage is approved, provided a prior authorization or appeal is submitted within the first 45 days of enrolment.
Can I get Fabhalta or Vanrafia free without insurance or with Medicare?
Both are on the Novartis Patient Assistance Foundation medication list. The foundation helps people who are uninsured, or who have government insurance and cannot afford their out-of-pocket costs; a Medicare patient must not qualify for Extra Help. Call 1-800-277-2254.
Is the HealthWell IgA nephropathy fund open?
No. HealthWell's IgA nephropathy fund page read "Closed" on 26 October 2026. When open it has a maximum award of $9,000 and a household income limit of 500% of the federal poverty level. HealthWell has no C3G fund.
What help is there for Filspari, Tarpeyo or Empaveli?
Tarpeyo's Touchpoints programme says commercially insured, approved patients may pay as little as $0, with no yearly figure printed. Filspari's and Empaveli's sites printed no copay, bridge or free-drug terms on the pages we read, so ask the sponsor directly.
The bottom line
For IgA nephropathy and C3G medicines, the programme rules are only partly public: Fabhalta and Vanrafia print a yearly limit ($20,000 and up to $15,000) and a free 12-month bridge, Tarpeyo says as little as $0 without a figure, and Filspari and Empaveli printed nothing we could read. Government-insured and uninsured patients start with the Novartis foundation for the two Novartis medicines, since HealthWell's fund was closed on 26 October 2026.
Sources
- Novartis. FABHALTA Novartis Patient Support (Co-Pay Plus and Bridge Program). fabhalta.com checked 2026-10-26
- Novartis. FABHALTA indications. fabhalta.com checked 2026-10-26
- Novartis. VANRAFIA Novartis Patient Support (Co-Pay Plus and Bridge Program). vanrafia.com checked 2026-10-26
- Novartis. Novartis Patient Assistance Foundation medication list. pap.novartis.com checked 2026-10-26
- Travere Therapeutics. FILSPARI patient site. filspari.com checked 2026-10-26
- Calliditas Therapeutics. TARPEYO Touchpoints savings and support. tarpeyo.com checked 2026-10-26
- EMPAVELI. EMPAVELI patient site. empaveli.com checked 2026-10-26
- HealthWell Foundation. IgA nephropathy fund. healthwellfoundation.org checked 2026-10-26
- NORD. RareCare patient assistance programs. rarediseases.org checked 2026-10-26
- FDA. Drugs@FDA application data for VANRAFIA (openFDA). api.fda.gov checked 2026-10-26
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Part D formulary file, contract year 2026 (September 2026). data.cms.gov (zip) checked 2026-10-04