The US has the highest prices in the world for new medicines, and in recent years the prices of many therapeutic agents have increased at rates far exceeding the rate of inflation.1,2 For instance, from 2008 to 2016, the list prices of brand-name oral medications increased by an average of 9% each year, and list prices of injectable agents increased by an average of 15% each year.1 Drug prices are a major public concern in the US, and there is strong, bipartisan political support for reform. A 2021 survey found that more than 80% of US adults favored allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices,3 something Medicare will be allowed to do for certain drugs starting in 2026 following the recent passage of the Inflation Reduction Act.
