The studies found that older Americans pay, on average, almost twice as much as the drug companies favored customers, such as large insurance companies and HMOs, for the medications with the highest dollar sales to seniors. This is a price differential four times greater than the average price differential for other consumer goods. In other districts the differential is significantly higher. For some specific drugs the findings are even more dramatic. But averages are misleading.
Many seniors already pay thousands of dollars every year.
Not only are seniors in this country paying high prices for their drugs, they are paying more than consumers in other countries. The Government Reform Committee conducted a cost survey of medications commonly used by seniors in the U.S., Canada and Mexico for the same drugs in the same amounts from the same manufacturer. In my district American seniors pay 72 percent more than consumers in Canada, and 102 percent more than consumers in Mexico. Older Americans pay the highest prices in the world for their prescription drugs. In short, the most profitable industry in the nation is charging the highest prices in the world to those who can least afford it, senior citizens without prescription drug coverage.