Prescription Drugs - Research and Data from KFF

Many Medicare Part D Stand-Alone Drug Plan Enrollees Will See Modest Premium Increases for 2027, But Others Could Pay Much More If They Don’t Switch Plans

Oct 2, 2026

Issue Brief

This brief analyzes the Medicare Part D stand-alone prescription drug plan (PDP) market for 2027. The analysis shows that there will be a modest reduction in the number of PDPs for 2027, along with modest premium increases less than $10 per month for many enrollees, but much larger monthly premium increases of $50 or more for others if they don’t change plans.

How TrumpRx Brand-Name Drug Prices Compare to Other Countries

Sep 24, 2026

Issue Brief

TrumpRx prices for brand-name drugs are about as likely to be higher as lower compared to average prices in other wealthy countries, according to an analysis that compares 32 brand-name drugs (without generics or biosimilars) on the TrumpRx website with publicly available prices in one or more of 11 OECD member countries.

Analysis: Prices for Many Brand-Name TrumpRx Drugs Are Cheaper than the Average Price in Other Wealthy Countries, But Are Almost as Likely To Be More Expensive

Sep 24, 2026

News Release

Consumers who buy brand-name prescription drugs without an available generic or biosimilar at the prices available through the new TrumpRx website are about as likely to pay more as pay less for those drugs relative to the publicly listed prices available in other comparatively wealthy countries, a new KFF analysis finds. The Trump administration has promoted the TrumpRx website as a way for consumers to get the lowest prices for prescription medications in the world, drawing on…

Examining LGBTQ+ Adults’ Experiences with Health Care Costs and Access

Aug 27, 2026

Poll Finding

This report examines how LGBTQ+ adults' experiences with health care costs and access compare to those of non-LGBTQ+ adults, finding that LGBTQ+ adults face significantly greater challenges affording and accessing care.

Medicare’s Proposed Cut to 340B Drug Payments Would Hit Safety-Net Hospitals While Benefiting For-Profit Hospitals

Jul 29, 2026

Policy Watch

This analysis finds that CMS’s proposed cut to Medicare reimbursement for 340B drugs, and accompanying increase for other outpatient services, would reduce revenues among safety-net hospitals while increasing revenues among for-profit hospitals.

Are Health Care Costs THE Top Issue for Voters?

Jul 29, 2026

From Drew Altman

In a new column, Dr. Drew Altman, Founding President and CEO, analyzes the polling on health costs as a voting issue and concludes that there is no one top voting issue. He writes: “I have come to the conclusion that the search for a single top issue through polling questions—whether it’s health costs, or gas prices, or the cost of food—is artificial. People worry about and experience these costs together. There is no top issue,…

Why Do We Hear More About High Drug Prices Than About Hospital Prices?

Jul 16, 2026

Perspective

In this JAMA Health Forum post, KFF's Larry Levitt outlines four reasons why high drug prices are in the spotlight more than hospital prices, even though hospitals accounted for 40% of the growth in national health spending from 2022 to 2024, and explores the potential for policy action to restrain them.

Nearly Four Million Medicare Beneficiaries Met the Eligibility Criteria in 2023 for the Medicare GLP-1 Bridge

Jun 29, 2026

Issue Brief

Medicare has launched a temporary program covering GLP-1s for obesity for people with Medicare, known as the Medicare GLP-1 Bridge. This analysis estimates the number of Medicare Part D enrollees who could potentially qualify for the Bridge program by meeting all of the eligibility criteria, based on claims data from 2023.

Key Facts About Medicare Spending Trends and Projections from the 2026 Medicare Trustees Report

Jun 24, 2026

Issue Brief

This brief provides an overview of key trends in Medicare spending and spending growth, as well as the impact of these trends on out-of-pocket costs for Medicare beneficiaries and Medicare program solvency, as projected by the Medicare Trustees in the 2026 Trustees Report.

How Medicare Advantage Rebates Disadvantage Medicare’s Stand-Alone Drug Plan Market

Jun 11, 2026

Issue Brief

The private plans that offer the Medicare Part D benefit - stand-alone drug plans and Medicare Advantage drug plans - are increasingly are competing on uneven terms, in part because the payment system for Medicare Advantage plans enables them to lower Part D premiums or reduce Part D cost sharing, making drug coverage from Medicare Advantage plans appear considerably cheaper, or even premium-free, to the beneficiary. This brief discusses the growing instability of the Part…

Topics

Policy Research

Polling

Health News

Data & Features

For Media

About

View the Latest: Prescription Drugs

Filter