AARP cites big jump in Rx prices
WASHINGTON Manufacturer prices for widely used brand-name prescription drugs jumped nearly 9% in 2008, AARP reported Thursday, while average prices for generic drugs continued a gradual slide.
In a widely disseminated report, the advocacy group for Americans ages 50 years and older said brand-name drug prices staged their fastest annual growth rate in six years, “far exceeding the general inflation rate of just 3.8%.” By contrast, the organization said in its latest Rx Watchdog Report, widely used generic drugs continued to decrease in 2008, falling by an average of 10.6%.
AARP public policy director John Rother said the pricing trends underscored the value of generics.
“A person taking three brand-name prescription drugs could see his or her annual costs climb by more than $550 in just one year,” Rother said. “Switching to generic drugs whenever possible is one of the quickest and easiest ways to drastically reduce your healthcare bills.”
The vast majority of generics, 83%, saw no price increase last year, AARP reported, while “many of the generics that did drop in price saw drastic decreases.”
AARP’s report also examined the manufacturer prices of widely used specialty prescription drugs aimed at serious conditions like cancer, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis.
“These drugs had even larger price increases than traditional brand-name drugs, rising an average of 9.3% in the last year,” the group reported. “The average annual increase in the cost of therapy for a specialty drug grew from $2,297 to $2,860 between 2007 and 2008.”
Reacting to AARP’s latest salvo, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America decried the report as one-sided and too narrow in its focus. PhRMA senior VP Ken Johnson said in a statement that AARP “distorts the true, overall picture in hopes of dramatizing its report and deflecting attention from the millions of dollars it earns each year from its insurance businesses.”
PhRMA has long advocated that policymakers, health plan payers and the public look at prescription drug prices in the larger context of their positive impact on overall health care savings.
“While the use of prescription medicines is growing because of the increased role medicines play in treating disease and helping patients to live longer, healthier lives, the cost of prescription medicines represents just over 10 cents of every health care dollar spent in the United States,” noted the group.