Drugs

Drugs Prices Higher in U.S. than 3 Other Countries: GAO

A Government Accountability Office (GAO) analysis of selected branded drug prices prepared for the Senate Budget Committee says that for 20 selected branded prescription drugs, estimated U.S. prices at the retail level were more than two to four times higher than prices in Australia, Canada, and France. The report says the U.S. prices GAO estimated for comparison reflect confidential rebates and other price concessions, which GAO refers to as net prices. Publicly available prices for the comparison countries were gross prices that did not reflect potential discounts.

“As a result,” GAO says, “the actual differences between U.S. prices and those of the other countries were likely larger than GAO estimates.”

The analysis also found consumers’ out-of-pocket costs for Rx drugs varied across and within all four countries, but likely were more within the U.S. and Canada, where multiple payers had a role in setting prices and designing cost-sharing for consumers, and not all consumers had prescription drug coverage.

The analysis was based on 2020 price data for selected drugs among those with the highest expenditures and use in the U.S. Medicare Part D program in 2017.

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FDA Classifies Boston Scientific Imager II Catheter Recall as Class I

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Gupta Raises Concerns About Overton’s Independence, Ideology

Overton Confirmation Remains Uncertain After Senate Hearing

FDA Classifies Boston Scientific Imager II Catheter Recall as Class I

FDA Approves Gazyva for Childhood-Onset Idiopathic Nephrotic Syndrome