One in twelve on medications didn’t take them as prescribed due to cost

June 9, 2023

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention June, 2023 LINK

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published data earlier this month showing that 8.2% of adults under 65 who were prescribed a medication in 2021 reported that they either did not take the medication, took lower doses than recommended, or delayed filling a prescription due to concern about cost. This data is from the National Health Interview Survey, a high quality representative national survey of almost 30,000 adults. About 60% of adults who were surveyed were prescribed at least one medication during the calendar year. While nonadherence was highest (22.9%) in those who were uninsured, it was 6.5% in those who reported that they were privately insured. It was 3.9% (1 in 25) for individuals with a household income greater than 400% of the federal poverty level, about $120,000 for a family of 4.

Patients often don’t take medications as prescribed for a variety of reasons which have nothing to do with cost, including side effects and lack of understanding. Cost as a reason for nonadherence can be addressed in plan design.

Implications for employers:

-        Employers should consider affordability as they design their benefits.

-        Employers can put medications for some chronic diseases, like diabetes, on a preventive medicine list to bypass deductibles and/or provide without cost sharing.

-        Plan members who are concerned about drug cost can sometimes make prescriptions affordable by switching to a generic or using discounts or drug copay assistance

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A word on air pollution: As many of us in Canada and the eastern and midwestern United States face a dangerous pall of smoke outside due to wildfires in the north, it’s worth reflecting on the health value of clean air. Here’s a link to a post from last month on the importance of clean indoor air in the workplace. For personal safety, N95 and KN95/KF94 masks (but not surgical masks) filter out a lot of the especially dangerous small p2.5 particles which pose the most health danger from the current poor air quality when you are outside and the air pollution is bad.

Monday, my post will be about LGBTQ+ employee experiences in the workplace

Have a wonderful weekend when it comes!