Groceries or medications? Rising Rx costs force terrible choices

With the costs of everything rising, a new study published in JAMA Network Open shows that older adults in the US are struggling to afford their prescription medications.

As a result, approximately 1 in 5 adults aged 65 and older either skipped, delayed or took less medication than prescribed. Some even took someone else’s medicines, due to cost concerns. That’s up from a survey in 2016, which found that 1 in 7 older adults were skipping their medications because of the cost.

Responding to a spring 2023 survey by Voices for Affordable Health, John in Washington State said he delayed refilling his blood pressure medication.

“I make so little money that it takes a tremendous amount of effort to save the smallest amount,” he said. “So I am unable to take care of other things like car repairs, residence upkeep, purchasing food, etc.”

Health professionals think the rising inflation and costs of medicine are to blame.

The JAMA Network Open study was based on a survey of more than 2,000 adults. Shockingly, more than 8% of respondents had to sacrifice basic needs, including groceries and gas to afford their medications, while 4.8% incurred debt to obtain the necessary drugs.

The study also highlighted various strategies older adults use to cope with high costs. For example, about 30% of respondents used copayment cards or coupons to afford their medications, a quarter of participants asked their physicians for lower-cost alternatives.  Approximately 17% shopped at different pharmacies to find better prices.

“It’s certainly something that any physician has heard in the clinic that patients sometimes don’t take the medication or didn’t fill them or didn’t start them because of the sticker price,” Dr. Adam Gaffney, a critical care physician at the Cambridge Health Alliance in Massachusetts, told NBC News.

Steps have been taken to address this issue, such as the Inflation Reduction Act, which imposes a monthly out-of-pocket cap on insulin costs for older adults on Medicare. And most health insurers cover 100% of the costs for annual checkups, flu shots and annual screenings. But more may need to be done.

Have you had to choose between prescriptions and groceries? Please share your story with Voices for Affordable Health.