Amid heightened public concern, the cost of prescription drugs is a focus of attention by the Biden administration and lawmakers in Congress and state capitals. Proposed actions range from allowing Medicare to negotiate the prices of certain drugs to limiting some drug price increases to inflation and capping out of pocket costs for Medicare beneficiaries in Part D, among other initiatives. See KFF’s research, analysis and public opinion data, as well as Kaiser Health News’ journalism, related to prescription drugs and their costs.
Featured Prescription Drugs Resources
Jul 27, 2022
This slideshow explains the prescription drug provisions proposed in the Senate Reconciliation Proposal.
Slideshow
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Related Prescription Drugs Resources
Jul 27, 2022
The brief provides a quick explainer of the prescription drug provisions in legislative text released by the Senate Finance Committee to be included in a forthcoming reconciliation bill and presents new estimates on how many Medicare beneficiaries could be helped by those provisions.
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February 28, 2005 Report
This report describes and reviews various options to address prescription drug spending growth, including a description of each cost-containment strategy, its use by private or public payers, and a discussion of known evidence about its effectiveness or cost-saving potential. It was prepared for the Kaiser Family Foundation by Jack Hoadley,…
October 31, 2004 Poll Finding
National Survey on Consumers’ Experiences With Patient Safety and Quality Information — ToplinesThis document includes the complete toplines from a national survey assessing Americans’ perceptions about the quality of health care, their awareness and reported usage of information in making their health care choices, and their experiences with their health…
October 31, 2005 Issue Brief
State Financing of the Medicare Drug Benefit: New Data on the “Clawback”Beginning in 2006, states will be obligated to finance part of the new Medicare prescription drug benefit via a monthly “clawback” payment to the federal government. This issue update analyzes the latest data and provides an overview of the…
May 30, 2004 Report
This report, Reactions to the New Medicare Drug Law, produced jointly by a bipartisan team of pollsters from Public Opinion Strategies and Peter D. Hart Research Associates, presents key findings from ten focus groups of people on Medicare in three cities: Pittsburgh, PA; Kansas City, KS, and Washington, DC. The…
February 28, 2008 Poll Finding
This document provides key findings from a USA Today/Kaiser/Harvard survey examining Americans’ views on, and experiences with, prescription drugs and the pharmaceutical industry, including drug costs, advertisements, safety issues, government regulation and medical research. Summary and Charts (.pdf)
March 30, 2008 Issue Brief
This synthesis of key findings from analysis presented in a series of eight Medicare Part D 2008 Data Spotlights describes key features of stand-alone prescription drug plans offered in 2008 and trends since 2006. The synthesis covers a range of topics, including premiums, the coverage gap, benefit design, cost sharing,…
September 29, 2000 Fact Sheet
Prescription drugs have become an integral part of medical practice – they help keep people healthy and save lives. But rising prescription drug costs have placed a growing burden on consumers, employers, and public programs. The issue of drug coverage for seniors under Medicare has moved to center stage in…
March 31, 2002 Issue Brief
This issue brief, prepared as part of the National ADAP Monitoring Project, examines how ADAPs purchase and dispense drugs, and the drug discount programs that assist states in containing ADAP costs. For more information on the series see the National ADAP Monitoring Project page. Issue Brief
March 31, 2002 Event
Testimony by Patricia Neuman, Sc.D., vice president and director of the Foundation’s Medicare Policy Project, for the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Subcommittee on Health, hearing on Creating a Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit: begins with a brief review of existing sources of prescription drug coverage for the Medicare population…
April 30, 2002 Report
This chartbook provides information on key trends in the health care marketplace including health spending, the structure of the health care marketplace, and health plan and provider relationships. It highlights data on health plan enrollment, premiums, and benefits, and the implications of health market trends for consumers and the safety…