WASHINGTON, D.C. — More than 900,000 Americans would have saved $3,000 a year on their prescription medications under Vice President Kamala Harris’ plan to cap out-of-pocket drug costs at $2,000 annually for patients with private insurance, were such a policy in place in 2022, according to new Public Citizen research. But unless cost caps are passed alongside measures to cut prescription drug prices, there is a risk of shifting costs onto taxpayers.
The Harris proposal is an extension of the cap established by the Inflation Reduction Act for Medicare Part D patients, which has saved 1.5 million seniors nearly $1 billion in the first half of this year alone.
Roughly 30% of Americans do not take medications as prescribed due to high drug costs. Many are cutting pills in half, skipping doses, not filling prescriptions and taking over-the-counter-drugs in lieu of their prescribed meds.
Public Citizen researchers found patients would have saved nearly $3 billion in 2022 if Harris’ proposed cap were in place that year. Public Citizen co-president Robert Weissman says this data proves Harris’ plan is not only feasible but a crucial first step to help Americans afford their medications.
“No one should ever have to choose between taking their medicine and putting food on the table,” said Weissman. “Vice President Harris is working to bring relief to patients who are struggling to afford to care for themselves as part of her bigger plan to lower drug costs. This proposed cap must work in tandem with a bigger, bolder congressional effort to stop pharmaceutical companies from price gouging treatments. We cannot let Big Pharma continue to take advantage of American patients and put more strain on our healthcare system.”