Feds Say Skimping Can't Save Seniors From Rising Med Cost

A study from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services inspector general's office estimates there has been a 17 percent decline in the overall number of prescriptions for brand-name medications under Medicare's Part D drug program from 2011 to 2015, even as Medicare enrollees spent more on such drugs anyway, reports the Associated Press . Beneficiaries' annual costs for branded drugs climbed 40 percent, from $161 in 2011 to $225 on average in 2015. The office says price hikes by drugmakers are squeezing older people and taxpayers, and it warns rising Medicare payments for brand-name drugs "will continue to affect Part D and its beneficiaries for years to come." The report also found drugmakers hiked prices faster for the most commonly used brand-name medications, with the highest demand among Medicare beneficiaries. Average costs for the 200 drugs with the most prescriptions in 2015 increased at nearly twice the rate for branded drugs as a whole. The affordability of maintenance medications "directly impacts Medicare beneficiaries and their ability to access the prescription drugs they need to stay healthy," says HHIS Assistant Inspector General Ann Maxwell. "This has an immediate direct impact on their quality of life and their health." Meanwhile, HHS Secretary Alex Azar has cited high list prices for drugs and high out-of-pocket costs as particularly critical issues in the U.S.