Recommendations for Lowering Prescription Drug Spending in Public Programs
Authors: Shelley A. Jazowski, Stacie B. Dusetzina
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2019)

Editorials3 December 2019Recommendations for Lowering Prescription Drug Spending in Public ProgramsShelley A. Jazowski, MPH and Stacie B. Dusetzina, PhDShelley A. Jazowski, MPHUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina (S.A.J.)Search for more papers by this author and Stacie B. Dusetzina, PhDVanderbilt University School of Medicine and Vanderbilt-Ingram Comprehensive Cancer Center, Nashville, Tennessee (S.B.D.)Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/M19-2895 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail Escalating drug prices and eroding health insurance coverage have not only contributed to significant spending on prescription drugs but also raised concerns about patients' ability to afford necessary medications, including such critical-need medications as insulin and anticancer therapies. Curbing prescription drug spending has become a primary focus of health care institutions, policy organizations, and the federal government, resulting in many congressional hearings and policy position statements from medical specialty organizations, whose members see the effects of cost-related medication nonadherence in practice.In its current policy paper, the Health and Public Policy Committee of the American College of Physicians (ACP) expands ...References1. Daniel H, Bornstein SS; Health and Public Policy Committee of the American College of Physicians. Policy recommendations for public health plans to stem the escalating costs of prescription drugs: a position paper from the American College of Physicians. Ann Intern Med. 2019;171:825-7. doi:10.7326/M19-0013 LinkGoogle Scholar2. Medicaid Services Investment and Accountability Act of 2019, Pub. L. No. 116-16, 2019. Google Scholar3. Medicare Payment Advisory Commission. Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy. 2018. Accessed at www.medpac.gov/docs/default-source/reports/mar18_medpac_entirereport_sec.pdf on 12 September 2019. Google Scholar4. Kesselheim AS, Huybrechts KF, Choudhry NK, et al. Prescription drug insurance coverage and patient health outcomes: a systematic review. Am J Public Health. 2015;105:e17-30. [PMID: 25521879] doi:10.2105/AJPH.2014.302240 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Dusetzina SB, Jazowski S, Cole A, et al. Sending the wrong price signal: why do some brand-name drugs cost Medicare beneficiaries less than generics? Health Aff (Millwood). 2019;38:1188-94. [PMID: 31260351] doi:10.1377/hlthaff.2018.05476 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar6. Moorkens E, Vulto AG, Huys I, et al. Policies for biosimilar uptake in Europe: an overview. PLoS One. 2017;12:e0190147. [PMID: 29284064] doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0190147 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar7. Dusetzina SB, Keating NL, Huskamp HA. Proposals to redesign Medicare Part D – easing the burden of rising drug prices. N Engl J Med. 2019;381:1401-4. [PMID: 31483987] doi:10.1056/NEJMp1908688 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar8. Cubanski J, Neuman T, True S, et al. What's the Latest on Medicare Drug Price Negotiations? San Francisco: Kaiser Family Foundation; 2019. Accessed at www.kff.org/medicare/issue-brief/whats-the-latest-on-medicare-drug-price-negotiations on 12 September 2019. Google Scholar9. Pollitz K, Neuman T, Tolbert J, et al. What's the Role of Private Health Insurance Today and Under Medicare-for-All and Other Public Option Proposals? San Francisco: Kaiser Family Foundation; 2019. Accessed at www.kff.org/health-reform/issue-brief/whats-the-role-of-private-health-insurance-today-and-under-medicare-for-all-and-other-public-option-proposals on 12 September 2019. Google Scholar10. Sachs R. Administration Outlines Plan to Lower Pharmaceutical Prices in Medicare Part B. Health Affairs Blog. 26 October 2018. Accessed at www.healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/hblog20181026.360332/full on 12 September 2019. Google Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina (S.A.J.)Vanderbilt University School of Medicine and Vanderbilt-Ingram Comprehensive Cancer Center, Nashville, Tennessee (S.B.D.)Disclosures: Disclosures can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M19-2895.Corresponding Author: Stacie B. Dusetzina, PhD, Department of Health Policy, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 2525 West End Avenue, Suite 1203, Nashville, TN 37203; e-mail, s.[email protected]edu.Current Author Addresses: Ms. Jazowski: Department of Health Policy and Management, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 135 Dauer Drive, 1101 McGavran-Greenberg Hall, CB#7411, Chapel Hill, NC 27599.Dr. Dusetzina: Department of Health Policy, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 2525 West End Avenue, Suite 1203, Nashville, TN 37203.This article was published at Annals.org on 12 November 2019. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoPolicy Recommendations for Pharmacy Benefit Managers to Stem the Escalating Costs of Prescription Drugs: A Position Paper From the American College of Physicians Hilary Daniel , Sue S. Bornstein , and Policy Recommendations for Public Health Plans to Stem the Escalating Costs of Prescription Drugs: A Position Paper From the American College of Physicians Hilary Daniel , Sue S. Bornstein , and Metrics 3 December 2019Volume 171, Issue 11Page: 855-856KeywordsDisclosureDrug policyDrug pricesDrug therapyDrugsHealth care policyMedicareMotivationPrimary carePublic policy ePublished: 12 November 2019 Issue Published: 3 December 2019 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2019 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...