Key Takeaways

• Most Americans support Medicare price reductions for prescription drugs
• Many Americans believe the government should be involved in setting price limits for prescription drugs
• Drug manufacturers and Big Pharma lobbyist groups have argued that lowering the prices of prescription drugs will impede drug research and innovation of new and better drugs
• Political back and forth may sidetrack Biden’s “Build Back Better,” which intends to lower the prices of prescription drugs

Americans want to pay less for their prescriptions, but change is slow to come from Capitol Hill. Here’s a hack to reduce the cost of your prescription meds by up to 80%.

According to recent Gallup polls, most Americans want to pay less for prescription drugs, many of which are very expensive. Americans pay two to three times more for prescription drugs compared to citizens of other developed nations - with the highest per capita drug spending in the world. This pushes the cost of health care out of the reach of most Americans who don’t have a good health insurance policy with comprehensive drug coverage.

The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) conducted a poll recently to determine the level of public support for price reduction negotiations, both by Medicare beneficiaries and those with private health insurance. The poll revealed that 83% of citizens are in favor of price reduction for prescription drugs.

The politics of prescription drugs

Democratic support for reducing the price of prescription medications was at 95%, while Independents and Republicans clocked in at 82% and 71%, respectively. The respondents were aware that lower prices might mean better affordability for those who need the drugs but with the possibility that price reduction may impede innovation and development of new medication, such as specialty drugs or specialist biologics.

Another poll, this one conducted by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, found that 84% of respondents would rather the federal government be allowed to set limits on the price of life-saving drugs and those that manage chronic conditions such as diabetes.

Big Pharma weighs in

Groups linked to PhRMA (the pharmaceutical industry’s trade association) have responded to the weighty public sentiments on reducing prescription drug prices in a variety of ways. There have been efforts to blanket the airwaves with ads pushing the agenda that price negotiation would be detrimental in the long run, as this would slow the invention of new and better drugs and therefore increase mortality rates.

Most voters, though, are not buying this. A whopping 93% of Americans believe pharmaceutical manufacturers would still be able to make enough money for the development of new drugs, even with lowered prices, according to the KFF poll.

With the unified public opinion of our generally politically divided society, what is holding back legislators and policymakers from both sides of the political divide from moving health policy forward more quickly to curb the sky-rocketing drug prices?

The Democrats’ new prescription drug pricing deal

The proposal on drug prices under Biden’s “Build Back Better” spending contains a number of consumer protections. Under this deal, Medicare would have the permission to negotiate drug prices for pharmacy counter-dispensed drugs. This also includes those medications administered in physicians’ offices for specific drugs that have been on the market for over 9–12 years. This means that drug makers would be charged with penalties for price hikes beyond the cost of inflation, even in insurance plans that are employer-sponsored.

The wins under this deal:

• The out-of-pocket cost of drugs for seniors will have a cap of $2,000 per year.
• The price of insulin would be capped per dose with a suggested maximum of $350 for insulin per month.
• It paves the way for direct negotiation of prices for certain drugs with drug manufacturers for Medicare Part B and Part D.
• It also limits yearly price hikes, which have traditionally outpaced inflation.

What does this mean for Medicare?

The CEO of the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) Jo Ann Jenkins is happy with this proposal. She said in a statement:

“Allowing Medicare to finally negotiate drug prices is a big win for seniors.... Preventing prices from rising faster than inflation and adding a hard out-of-pocket cap to Part D will provide real relief for seniors with the highest drug costs.”

Medicare Part D covers prescription drugs at the retail level. Part D enrollees whose spend more on their prescriptions than the “catastrophic” threshold are expected to pay 5% of the drug costs that exceeding this threshold. Changes to drug plans under the “Build Back Better” Act helps patients that have significant drug bills to avoid financial ruin.

The 2021 out-of-pocket drug cost was $6,500, which, according to several health care activists, is still too high. This high cost has the risk of financially crippling low- and middle-income Americans who should be benefiting from Medicare.

On the other hand, PhRMA regards the drug price negotiation by Medicare to be an existential threat that would have potentially considerable impact on its business, costing them billions of dollars. The group spent $23 million on lobbying within the first 9 months of 2021, surpassing previous records.

Though price negotiations as an idea is extremely popular, it is yet to be fully realized. Some politicians are passionate about pushing for reform in this area. They lack incentive, though, because they are not held accountable by the voters to deliver on this. This has led to meager gains that barely cause a ripple in the overall picture. It is evident that drug manufacturers are not likely to take steps that will negatively impact their healthy profits any time soon.

Did you know that you can spend up to 80% less on prescription medication?

ModRN Health is here to help if you are having trouble paying your pharmacy expenses. We offer price transparency, helping our members compare prices at local pharmacies to find the more affordable prescription medication prices.

If you struggle with prescription costs, find your medication is not on your insurer’s formulary, have high premiums or deductibles, we can help you reduce healthcare costs with savings on your medications.

Joining with us could mean receiving up to an 80% discount on your current prescription charges. You also gain reward points when you or someone you refer uses ModRN Health to fill their prescription. Open a free account with us today to learn more.