| Offices : Beckley • Charleston • Fairmont • Martinsburg • Washington, DC | E-mail Senator Rockefeller |
June 12, 2001
ROCKEFELLER EXPRESSES OUTRAGE AT THE SPIRALING COST OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS
Says Price Increases Underscore Need for Prescription Drug Benefit
WASHINGTON, D.C. – At a press conference today on Capitol Hill, Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) reiterated the urgent need for a Medicare prescription drug benefit citing the skyrocketing cost of prescription drugs facing most seniors. Rockefeller made his case by pointing to a just-released study, by Families USA, which shows that prices for the 50 most-often prescribed drugs for seniors rose at more than twice the rate of inflation last year.
"Today's report shows that the burden of being able to afford prescription drugs is getting worse. Seniors who rely on prescription drugs have been repeatedly hit with price increases for the medications they need to remain healthy. Many seniors live on fixed incomes and simply can't cope with these kinds of price increases. That's why we should take action to help them by providing a Medicare prescription drug benefit now," Rockefeller said.
According to the report, over one-third of the drugs that are most frequently prescribed for seniors rose in price at least three times above the rate of inflation from January 2000 to January 2001. For example, in this one year period, a drug that is used for glaucoma increased its cost by 22.5 percent and an antidiabetic drug increased by 15.5 percent. In the last five years, the study notes, 27 of the 36 top-selling drugs rose in price a minimum of five times.
"Affording prescription drugs is particularly difficult for seniors living in rural areas like West Virginia because they already spend a greater percentage of their income on medications. These seniors spend over 25 percent more on out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs than seniors in urban areas. In fact, the average fixed income for a senior in West Virginia is $10,800 a year, and they are forced to spend over $2,000 of that small income on prescription drugs."
Rockefeller has fought for years for the inclusion of a meaningful prescription drug benefit for seniors and disabled under Medicare, and he believes that Congress must seize on the opportunity to pass such legislation this year.
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