Drug Prices Increase Under Part D

Pharmaceutical companies have drastically raised prices on brand name drugs commonly prescribed to elderly people in Medicare Part D, since its implementation in 2006. The prices of 220 brand name drugs used by people in Part D increased by an average of 7.4 percent in 2007 — more than two times the general inflation rate. The average cost per perscription rose from $80 to $151 in 2007, threatening consumers by increasing the likelihood of higher premiums and the chance that people will fall into the gap created by this "donut hole," and increase their out-of-pocket spending.