As prescription drug prices continue to increase, they are expected to become a top issue for candidates during the 2016 presidential election.
According to a recent report,
prescription drug spending increased by 13 percent in 2014, which is the largest increase since 2001.
Hillary Clinton, a former secretary of state and recently announced presidential candidate, has already drawn attention to the issue on the campaign trail.
"We need to drive a harder bargain negotiating with drug companies about the costs of drugs," Clinton said in Iowa last Wednesday,
according to MSNBC.
The study from the
IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics says the increase is largely from higher prices, fewer expiring patents on brand-name drugs, and an increase of patients due to more insurance coverage through Obamacare.
The National Journal reports that drug prices are one area that the new healthcare law didn't address in terms of specifics.
The
Kaiser Health Tracking Poll released Tuesday found that 76 percent of adults living in the United States think that the top healthcare priority for President Barack Obama and Congress should be "making sure that high-cost drugs for chronic conditions, such as HIV, hepatitis, mental illness and cancer, are affordable to those who need them."
Sixty percent of those polled said that the government should take action to make sure that the prices of prescription drugs are lowered. The survey included 1,506 adults, ages 18 and over, between April 8-14.
The
Campaign for Sustainable Rx Pricing has also reported that while specialty drugs only make up 1 percent of drugs prescribed in the United States, they account for 31 percent of drug spending.
In addition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported in the past that almost half of all Americans take at least one prescription drug, while other groups have had that number much higher.
The National Journal is reporting that the only presidential contender other than Clinton to address prescription drug prices is Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who has proposed creating a board that would aid in determining the costs of regulations, which he and other conservatives say would help in lowering costs.
But with drug prices becoming an issue affecting so many Americans, more positions and ideas are expected to be presented by the various candidates as the election draws near.
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