Perceived Rise in Prescription Drug Prices Since 2017

by Willem Roper, Apr 29, 2020

A new survey shows a vast majority of Americans believe prescription drug prices have increased since 2017, which could point to both rising healthcare costs and rising out-of-pocket expenses.

In a February survey from Gallup, nearly two-thirds of respondents said they believe prescription drug prices have increased over the last three years, with 35 percent saying they’ve increased by a lot. A quarter of respondents said they’ve remained the same, while just seven percent believed drug prices have decreased since 2017.

There were partisan differences in whether people believed drug prices had increased since 2017. Just 47 percent of Republican respondents believed prescription prices have risen, compared to 70 percent of Independents and 81 percent of Democrats. Nearly a majority of Republicans (42 percent) believe prices have stayed the same.

Nearly one-third of respondents in the survey said they prioritize lower drug prices for the 2020 election. Neither Trump nor Biden have substantial plans to tackle rising drug prices, while a House bill passed late last year to negotiate lower prices with drug manufacturers has been stuck in the Senate. Over three-quarters of respondents in the survey support the bill, titled the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act.

With continuously high drug costs during the current COVID-19 pandemic, this may be a time when lawmakers reconsider prices set by drug manufacturers and the pharmaceutical industry.