A September 2016 Kaiser Family Foundation poll reveals that a growing number of Americans say “no” to the way pharmaceutical companies are allowed to do business. They find drug prices unreasonable, 77 percent, up five points from just a year ago. They want the government to keep the pharmaceutical industry in check. The vast majority of Americans support government drug price negotiation for people with Medicare. And, even more Americans want pharmaceutical companies to publicly report how they set prices.
More than eight out of ten Americans (82 percent) support government drug price negotiation, up from 79 percent in April 2015. Americans are angry about how drug companies set prices. They want to understand their rationale (84 percent want a public accounting).
Almost eight in ten Americans (78 percent) now want the government to restrict the amount drug companies charge for expensive medications for costly conditions like hepatitis or cancer. In the meantime, more than seven in ten (71 percent) support legal drug importantion from Canada. They may not know that while it is illegal to import drugs from abroad, the FDA has never prosecuted anyone for importing medications for personal use or that some websites help people know which international pharmacies are safe to use and help people compare drug prices.
Two out of three Americans (66 percent) support Secretary Clinton’s proposal to create an independent panel that oversees drug prices for prescription drugs. The majority of Americans seem to be ok with allowing drug companies to advertise their drugs to consumers.
Interestingly, it seems that more Americans are concerned about the future of the Affordable Care Act (66 percent) and health insurance premiums (60 percent) than the cost of prescription drugs (51 percent). They say the Presidential candidates’ positions on health insurance and health care costs are more likely to affect their vote than their positions on prescription drug prices.
If you want Congress to rein in drug prices, please sign this petition to Congress.
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