It’s Becoming a Tradition: A New Year Brings Higher Rx Prices

January is the time for new beginnings. For prescription drugmakers, it’s also a time to raise prices.

An analysis by the health care research firm 3 Axis Advisors finds pharmaceutical companies will hike the price of at least 250 branded drugs by about 4.5% on average.

Yep. That’s higher than the overall inflation rate, which stood at 2.7% in December.

But 4.5% is about the same as we saw in 2024. And it’s well below the median 9% increase that drugmakers charged in 2015 and 2016.

Pfizer raised prices of more than 60 drugs, including a 3% increase for Paxlovid, used to treat Covid.  Bristol Myers raised the price of its already expensive cancer cell therapies, Abecma and Breyanzi, by 6% and 9% respectively.

Some drug companies are also reducing some prices. For example, Reuters reports that Merck & Co. plans to cut the list price of its diabetes drugs Januvia and Janumet.

U.S. consumers pay more for prescription medicines than any other country. And more drug price increases will likely be announced throughout January.

What about you? Have the prices for the prescriptions you need going up? Share your story with Voices for Affordable Health.