Spending on drugs has doubled in the past decade but not because of price increases. Spending has doubled because revolutionary new drugs have been created for the treatment of heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, arthritis, depression, obesity, blood pressure and other illnesses. In other words, we're spending more on drugs because we're using drugs more. The new drugs are so much better than the previous generation that if one controls for quality, it's clear that the cost of treating these diseases has actually been falling not rising. Nevertheless, the increased spending on drugs has made the pharmaceutical firms a target for politicians seeking electoral advantage over sound public policy.
Politicians are always short-sighted.
One hopes, however, that U.S. consumers of pharmaceuticals will take a longer view. Not if price controls are imposed today.