Poll: Most Americans favor federal action on drug prices

An overwhelming majority of Americans favor government action to restrain prescription drug prices, according to a poll released Thursday (Source: “Poll Finds Majority Of Americans Want Restraints On Drug Prices,” Kaiser Health News, Sept. 29, 2016).

Eighty-two percent of those polled said they want Medicare to negotiate prices with the companies, which Congress does not allow. Seventy-eight percent favored limiting the amount companies can charge for high-cost drugs, such as those that fight cancer or hepatitis, according to the poll from the Kaiser Family Foundation. And more than two-thirds want to let Americans buy drugs imported from Canada. Support is strong no matter the political party.

The views come as the skyrocketing prices of some drugs are under intense scrutiny, with new evidence showing massive price hikes by some companies. Some members of Congress have called for investigations, but there is no consensus on how to effectively rein in the cost, particularly for lifesaving and unique treatments such as the EpiPen for people with deadly allergies and the hepatitis C-curing drug Sovaldi.