Introduction
Prescription medicine prices in the United States have risen dramatically in subsequent years, putting a considerable financial strain on individuals, health professionals, and insurance agencies. The exorbitant cost of prescription medicines has become a paramount public health concern, with multitudes of Americans unable to afford necessary treatments. The United States is the foremost industrialized nation that does not restrict prescription medicine costs, allowing pharmaceutical corporations to make enormous profits. Controlling prescription medicine costs in the United States is divisive, with debates on both sides. This article contends that prescription medicine pricing in the United States should be regulated, but not totally. Instead, the government should strike a compromise between prescription medication price control and motivation for large pharmaceutical corporations to create new drugs.
Discussion
The United States spends more on healthcare than any other industrialized nation, with prescription medications accounting for a sizable share of that total. Prescription medications constituted 10% of healthcare expenditure in the United States in 2018, according to a 2018 report, with the cost of prescription medications rising by 3.2% yearly (Wineinger et al., 2019). Its pace of increase exceeds inflation and salary growth rates, imposing a massive financial strain on patients, healthcare professionals, and insurance companies.
The exorbitant cost of prescription medications has profound health implications. Individuals who cannot obtain necessary drugs are more inclined to miss doses or quit taking them, resulting in poorer health effects and more significant long-term healthcare expenses. The rising price of prescription drugs also prevents low-income patients from accessing life-saving treatments, resulting in health inequities. Prescription drug price regulation would aid in lowering medical costs, improving patient access to pharmaceuticals, and improving general health results. Furthermore, restricting prescription drug costs would keep the United States in step with other industrialized countries that limit drug prices, strengthening the country’s worldwide healthcare status.
While there are multiple strong reasons to limit prescription drug costs, there are also counter-arguments. One of the most compelling reasons for opposing regulation is that it will hinder pharmaceutical advancement. Pharmaceutical corporations invest billions of dollars in developing new pharmaceuticals, and the increased cost of prescription medications is required to reimburse those investments. Regulation of prescription medicine costs may diminish the motivations for pharmaceutical corporations to spend on research and development, resulting in a drop in the creation of new drugs. Furthermore, regulation may restrict the money readily accessible for drug testing and research, rendering it more challenging to bring new pharmaceuticals to market.
Whereas entirely restricting prescription medicine pricing would be disastrous for the pharmaceutical business, the government could find a happy medium between regulation and development. One way could be to set prescription medicine pricing for necessary medications like insulin, EpiPens, and other life-saving pharmaceuticals (Wineinger et al., 2019). This would guarantee that low-income individuals could access necessary pills without incurring high financial costs. Furthermore, pharmaceutical corporations could be offered incentives to produce new drugs, such as tax cuts or government assistance for R&D. This strategy would enable the pharmaceutical sector to keep researching new drugs while also guaranteeing that essential prescriptions are cost-effective and readily available to low-income consumers.
Conclusion
In conclusion, prescription drug pricing regulation in the United States is controversial, with justifications on both sides. While the high cost of prescription pharmaceuticals is a substantial public health concern, controlling drug prices may hamper pharmaceutical sector innovation. A comprehensive strategy is required, with vital medication prices restricted and benefits offered to foster drug research innovation. This strategy would increase patient access to drugs, lower healthcare expenses, and guarantee that the pharmaceutical sector could develop new therapies to enhance patient healthcare.
Reference
Wineinger, N. E., Zhang, Y., & Topol, E. J. (2019). Trends in prices of popular brand-name prescription drugs in the United States. JAMA Network Open, 2(5). Web.