Posted by Michael Wonder on 13 Sep 2016
U.S. Government Accountability Office publishes report on the pricing of generic drugs under Medicare (Part D)
12 September 2016 - Generic drug prices declined overall under Medicare Part D—the voluntary outpatient prescription drug program administered by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services within the Department of Health and Human Services since 2010.
Specifically, generic drug prices fell 59 percent from the first quarter of 2010 through the second quarter of 2015. This decline reflects a changing basket of 2,378 unique generic drugs, including those that came into or exited the market during this period. The US Government Accountability Office also analyzed an established basket of 1,441 generic drugs that were present during the entire period of analysis. Unlike the larger changing basket of drugs, prices of established generics decreased moderately and then increased slightly.
The steeper price decrease for the changing basket of generic drugs is at least partially attributable to more rapid price declines among new generic drugs as they enter the market.
