Elder Care Guide and Information

According to the watchdog report issued by the AARP, Medicare Part D is part of the reason mom and dad are seeing drug prices rise faster than the rate of inflation  . The report, produced by AARPs Public Policy Institute says the prices of brand name drugs used most commonly by people in Medicare Part D rose 7.4% last year.

This report is troublesome on a number of fronts. Rising prices mean higher insurance prices are on the way. Seniors on Medicare Part D will fall into coverage gap called the “donut hole” faster increasing their out-of-pocket expenses You’ll be seeing more stories about the elderly forced to make a choice between other necessities and their health.

When seniors worry about their ability to afford medications they stop taking them or decide to change their dosing regimen without consulting their doctor.  When drugs are not taken as prescribed the benefit of the medicine can be lost resulting in poorer health and costly, but otherwise avoidable emergency trips to the hospital.

Interesting, isn’t it, that after big pharma convinced our elected representatives that Medicare Part D should not contain a provision allowing the government to negotiate down prescription costs, they are now driving the prices up?

Filed under: Medicare RX, Prescription Drugs