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If you have a chronic condition such as COPD, rheumatoid arthritis, or diabetes, you may constantly face worries about how to afford your medications. One of the most important ways to advocate for your own health is to communicate clearly with your doctor about drug prices.
One of the most important achievements of the Biden administration was the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022. Among the act’s many provisions was one that gave Medicare the power to negotiate drug prices for certain medications via the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program (DPNP).
Direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical advertisements have been a focus of the FDA and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for some time. There have been concerns about the misleading way that pharmaceutical companies promote certain medications. New prescription drug advertising reforms strive to change all of this.
In 2024, the Food & Drug Administration gave the state of Florida permission to import certain medications from Canada. This is part of the fight to help Americans obtain the type of drug prices that other countries pay. The decision from the FDA took many by surprise because it was the first time that the FDA had made such a decision.
Real-time prescription price tools help patients understand exactly what their medications will cost before they reach the pharmacy. By showing coverage details, alternatives, and out-of-pocket pricing upfront, these tools can reduce surprises and help people nationwide make more affordable medication choices.
One of the options that the United States is considering for lowering drug costs is through direct-to-consumer strategies such as online marketplaces. These can bypass insurance plans and offer patients the chance to receive the medications they need for conditions like asthma or high cholesterol. Discover more about online marketplaces and what they can offer.
Simplefill is a full-service prescription assistance company that researches, qualifies, and maintains patients’ enrollment in all sources of assistance available to them.
Apply today by calling 877-386-0206. A caring Simplefill representative will contact you within 24 hours to discuss your application and, if qualified, enroll you in the program.
Yes, if you need to purchase a medication, you will need to have a valid prescription from your doctor. Most online pharmacies will have ways of verifying the validity of the prescription with a simple process through their website.
Discount cards can help you obtain medications at affordable rates, and there may be government programs, too, for lower-income consumers. Patient assistance programs, on the other hand, help you find the discounted rates you need and do the work of applying for them on your behalf, giving you the best chance of obtaining lower prices.
Drug prices are not regulated in the United States, so pharmaceutical companies have the right to charge whatever they want for the products they make, which is a problem for consumers. There are also middlemen, such as pharmacy benefit managers, who can influence rates, and many pharmaceutical companies go out of their way to prevent the manufacture of generic medications, even suing those who attempt to do so.
The costs of prescription medications continue to increase, making it very difficult for people struggling with chronic conditions like high cholesterol or HIV to receive the drugs they need. There are many ways to lower your prescription costs, however, from asking for generics to joining drug assistance programs. Here are ten of the most effective options:
The Employer Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) is a federal law that, among other functions, sets minimum standards for employer-sponsored health plans. States have recently passed laws that attempt to regulate pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), and ERISA has been used to preempt these, which has been a focus for all sponsors of group health plans and a worry for states.
While the U.S. government could theoretically buy drug patents to lower costs, current and more realistic tools include march-in rights, Section 1498, and government-negotiated licensing. These mechanisms can force lower prices or enable cheaper generic versions of expensive medications. In this blog, we’ll break down how these policies work, their potential impact on drug affordability in the U.S., and what they could mean for patients facing rising prescription costs.
One of the tools states are considering implementing is Prescription Drug Affordability Boards (PDAB) that offer upper payment limit (UPL) authority. Only some states have PDABs, and none have yet fully implemented UPLs, but they are on their way to doing so. Can this help drug pricing? Learn more about these programs.
