Prescription drug prices are rising unpredictably now and above inflation, we’ll insert graphs

Nicole Rapfogel, Nicole Rapfogel is a policy analyst for Health at American Progress. Prior to joining American Progress, she interned with the Field and Outreach team at Population Connection, where she organized and advocated for U.S. policy to advance global reproductive health and rights. She graduated magna cum laude from Duke University with a bachelor’s degree in public policy and global health and completed her Master of Public Health at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth College, NOV 1, 2023 “Drug Companies Continue To Hike Prices Above Inflation.” Center for American Progress, www.americanprogress.org/article/drug-companies-continue-to-hike-prices-above-inflation/. Accessed 30 June 2024 – emron---wh

To assess the scope of drug price increases above the inflation rate in the commercial market, CAP analyzed a dataset provided by Patients for Affordable Drugs of all drugs with list prices that increased more than 1 percent on July 1, 2023. These price changes represent one of two times drug companies typically adjust their prices in a given year: January 1 and July 1. The analysis used the 3 percent Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for June 2022 to June 2023 as the inflation rate against which to compare price hikes, aggregating all dosage forms and strengths of each drug by taking the median price increase across all variations of a drug produced by a single manufacturer.

List prices, or wholesale acquisition costs, are the prices manufacturers set independent of any rebates or discounts and are the basis for drug prices across markets. Notably, they differ from the annual manufacturer price, or “weighted average price paid to a manufacturer by wholesalers for sales of the drug to retail community pharmacies, as well as such pharmacies that purchase drugs directly from manufacturers,” which CMS uses to determine which drugs are subject to Medicare inflation rebates.

Drug companies increased prices for some drugs by more than five times the inflation rate

Drug price increases for drugs with price hikes greater than 1 percent, compared to the inflation rate of 3 percent, July 2023