Travel Medicine · Cost
The cheapest way to get travel medications is to pay a flat-fee visit for the prescription, then fill the generic at your own pharmacy using GoodRx or Cost Plus Drugs. That usually beats any service that bundles a marked-up medication into one price. Bidwell Health charges a flat $45 and adds no markup to your medication, you pay the pharmacy directly.
| Medication | GoodRx (approx) | Cost Plus Drugs | Retail without a coupon |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doxycycline (malaria) | ~$9 to $18 | Among the lowest | $80 to $180+ |
| Atovaquone-proguanil (generic Malarone) | ~$43 | Carried (generic) | $160 to $245 |
| Azithromycin (traveler's diarrhea) | ~$10 to $15 | ~$5 | $30 to $50 |
| Acetazolamide (altitude) | ~$15 to $30 | Low | Higher |
| Scopolamine patch (motion sickness) | ~$20 to $45 | Carried | Higher |
| Generic epinephrine auto-injector | ~$170 to $300 | Varies | Brand EpiPen ~$650+ |
The visit fee is only half the price. What matters is visit fee plus the medication. A service that ships a bundled pill tends to mark it up; a flat-fee visit that sends the prescription to your pharmacy lets you pay the generic cash price. For malaria, that often means roughly $55 to $88 total with us (visit plus generic) versus around $159 from a service that bundles the medication. See the full 2026 comparison.
Runway Health prices checked June 19, 2026: a $30 online visit plus the medication, shipped to you. We charge a flat $45 visit and send the prescription to your own pharmacy, where you pay the generic cash price with nothing added. The honest comparison is the total of both parts.
| Trip need | Here: $45 visit + your generic | Runway: $30 visit + shipped med |
|---|---|---|
| Malaria pills (doxycycline) | about $54 to $63 | $159 ($30 + $129) |
| Altitude pills (acetazolamide) | about $60 to $75 | $129 ($30 + $99) |
| Motion sickness (scopolamine patch) | about $65 to $90 | $129 ($30 + $99) |
| Traveler's diarrhea (azithromycin) | about $50 to $60 | $59 ($30 + $29) |
| Epinephrine auto-injector (generic) | about $215 to $345 | $379 ($30 + $349) |
We are not cheaper by a wide margin on everything, and we will say so. For traveler's diarrhea the totals are about the same, and epinephrine is expensive either way because the device itself costs a lot. The gap is largest where the drug is cheap as a generic but marked up when bundled, like malaria and altitude pills, where filling doxycycline or acetazolamide yourself can run roughly a third of a bundled price. What Runway offers that we do not is the medication shipped to your door and a physician visit. We send the prescription to your pharmacy and are nurse-practitioner-led. Pick the trade-off that fits your trip.
Pay a flat-fee visit for the prescription, then fill the generic at your own pharmacy using a discount tool like GoodRx or Cost Plus Drugs. This is usually cheaper than a service that bundles a marked-up medication into one price. Bidwell Health charges a flat $45 and adds no markup to your medication.
It depends on the drug. Cost Plus Drugs often has the lowest price on common generics like doxycycline and azithromycin, while GoodRx coupons can win at a nearby pharmacy. Compare both for your specific medication before you fill, since prices change.
Usually not for these generics. TrumpRx mainly lists brand-name drugs at negotiated prices and redirects you to manufacturers. For old, cheap generics like doxycycline and azithromycin, GoodRx or Cost Plus Drugs typically beat it. Check, but do not assume TrumpRx is lowest for travel generics.
Because the visit is a flat $45 and we do not mark up the medication. You pay the generic cash price at your own pharmacy. Services that ship a bundled medication tend to mark it up, so their total can be higher even when their visit fee looks lower.
For most trips, yes on total cost, because Runway bundles a marked-up medication while we send the prescription to your pharmacy at the generic price. Checked June 19, 2026, malaria prevention runs about $54 to $63 here versus $159 at Runway, and altitude pills about $60 to $75 versus $129. For traveler's diarrhea the totals are about the same, roughly $55 versus $59. Runway ships the medication to you and uses physicians, while we send it to your pharmacy and are nurse-practitioner-led.