CoverMyMeds (McKesson) vs SamaCare
Two Prior Authorization vendors, side by side. Facts from public sources; judgments are ours.
At a glance
Derived from public facts · a rough scale, not a ranking
| CoverMyMeds (McKesson) | SamaCare | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Free to providers (funded by payers/pharma) · Payers, PBMs, pharma fund the network | Free to providers (funded by payers/pharma) · Pharma funds premium services and data |
| Speed to go live | Free self-serve portal; EHR-embedded options exist | Web portal, no IT project required |
| Automation model | Data / network utility · medication ePA network and portal | Software platform · Unified PA portal, AI touchless tier |
| Built for | Small practices, Mid-size groups, Enterprise systems, Payers | Small practices, Mid-size groups |
| Security posture | No certifications published | SOC 2 Type I, HIPAA |
| Company maturity | 18 yrs (est. 2008) | 8 yrs (est. 2018) |
| Financial backing | Subsidiary of McKesson | $33M+ · Series B |
| Named customers | None public | None public |
| Published results | No public numbers | No public numbers |
| Documented integrations | 5 listed | 4 listed |
| Third-party validation | None found | None found |
Bottom line
- Pick CoverMyMeds if you want free electronic prior auth for medications with the broadest payer and pharmacy network.
- Pick SamaCare if you are a specialty practice buried in medical-benefit prior auths and want one free web portal replacing faxes and payer portals today.
CoverMyMeds (McKesson)
The largest electronic prior authorization network for medications
- Founded
- 2008
- HQ
- Columbus, OH
- Stage
- Subsidiary of McKesson
- Raised
- n/a
What it does
- Electronic prior authorization for retail and specialty drugs
- Specialty enrollment and hub services (RxLightning)
- Medical benefit PA for oncology and radiology (FastAuth)
- Benefit checks and prescription price transparency
- Patient affordability and copay program delivery
Where it's strong
- Network effects are real: it completed 43 million prior authorizations in the 2025 reverification season and most prescribers already have accounts.
- Free for providers and pharmacies, which makes adoption easy.
- McKesson ownership ties it into specialty distribution and pharma services that competitors cannot match.
What buyers should weigh
- Coverage is payer-dependent and shifting: Independence Blue Cross dropped CoverMyMeds for Surescripts ePA in August 2025, so verify your payer mix routes through it.
- It centers on medication PA; medical benefit and procedure prior auth needs mostly require other tools despite the FastAuth acquisition.
- Its revenue comes from pharma and payers, so provider-side feature priorities can lag.
Integrations
SamaCare
Prior authorization platform for buy-and-bill specialty drugs
- Founded
- 2018
- HQ
- San Francisco, CA
- Stage
- Series B
- Raised
- $33M+
What it does
- One portal for all medical benefit PA submissions
- AI-assisted form completion and payer requirements
- Status tracking, renewals, and expiration alerts
- Benefit verification and enrollment workflows
- Approval analytics across a 20K-provider network
Where it's strong
- Purpose-built for buy-and-bill drugs, a workflow retail-focused PA tools handle poorly.
- Free for practices because pharma funds it, which removes the budget fight.
- Network data from roughly 20,000 providers improves payer form accuracy and approval odds.
What buyers should weigh
- The pharma-funded model means manufacturers see aggregate data; understand the data terms before signing.
- Scope is medication PA for specialty drugs, not procedures, imaging, or surgical auths.
- Smaller company (Series B) than incumbent networks, so vendor risk is higher than with McKesson or Optum.
Integrations
Compare against the rest of Prior Authorization
Deciding between these two?
First Pass tracks Prior Authorization every week: funding, launches, and what changed since this page was written.