AARP’s latest Public Policy Institute report highlights the increases in the list prices of 25 top Medicare Part D drugs that are not currently slated to be negotiated with pharmaceutical companies. Prices for those drugs have increased by an average of 98% since they first entered the market.

These increases are particularly distressing because older adults, who take an average of four or five prescription drugs monthly, face cost sharing that is directly affected by price increases. To cope, 20% report using strategies such as not filling a prescription or skipping doses to save money on prescription medications.

“Unsurprisingly, lifetime list price changes increase dramatically the longer a product has been on the market,” the report notes. “For example, the average lifetime price increase for six products on the market for less than 12 years was 47%, whereas the average lifetime price increase for four products on the market for 16 years or longer was 207%.”

“Increased drug costs—if left unchecked—will prompt more older Americans to stop taking necessary medications, thus leading to poorer health outcomes and higher healthcare costs in the future,” the report warns.

The report is based on an analysis of 2022 data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the Medicare Part D Spending by Drug Dashboard, and Medi-Span Price Rx Pro.

To download the report, click here