Professionals offer options to help struggling consumers.
Many people are not taking their prescribed medications as directed, and health care and pharmaceutical professionals say cost is a big reason.
Medication nonadherence – when a patient does not take their medications as intended – has been an ongoing problem in health care, according to research over the past several years.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 30 to 50 percent of chronic disease treatment in the U.S. fails due to people not taking their medications as prescribed. Consequently, about 125,000 deaths per year are attributed to non-adherence.
While there are different reasons people may not comply with a treatment regimen ordered by their health care provider, local health care providers and pharmacists say there’s one concern they hear from people quite a bit.
“Most of the time the biggest complaint is that the medication is cost prohibitive,” said Laura Lofton, PharmD, a pharmacist with Owl Drug Store at Hattiesburg Clinic.
Lofton said cost issues could come into play in multiple ways.
“Oftentimes, patients may not fully understand how their insurance works or its reimbursement structure. Sometimes it may be a deductible causing the issue or their provider has prescribed a non-preferred product or a brand name drug that causes the high price.”
Matthew McClain, MD, a physician at Lincoln Road Family Medicine, said cost is commonly a major concern he hears from his patients as well.
“We try to look for meds that are covered by their plan, or we try to use discount cards,” said McClain.
“If a patient cannot afford the medicine, it may not be taken. Even the best treatment plan is rendered ineffective without proper access to their medicine,” McClain said.
Lofton agrees education is key to helping ensure people get the medications they need.
One of the options Lofton said her pharmacy offers is a low cost prescription list, which includes commonly used generic prescriptions that are available at a lower cost than name brands. The list is available on their website at www.hattiesburgclinic.com/pharmacy.
“We can look at that list and see if there is a therapeutic equivalent that would be more cost effective and then contact their doctor about the medication change,” she said.
She said they also offer exclusive coupons, depending on the medication.
Lofton said she wants people to know there are options out there to help them.
“Ask questions if there are ways to save money, shop around for affordable cash prices, and seek out manufacturers’ coupons on brand name medications,” she said.
