NPR

Prescription Drug Costs Driven By Manufacturer Price Hikes, Not Innovation

A recent study shows the cost of brand-name drugs is rising — not because of expensive new therapies entering the market but because manufacturers are raising prices on existing drugs.
While some new drugs entering the market are driving up prices for consumers, drug companies are also hiking prices on older drugs.

The skyrocketing cost of many prescription drugs in the U.S. can be blamed primarily on price increases, not expensive new therapies or improvements in existing medications as drug companies frequently claim, a new study shows.

, published Monday in the journal,found that the cost of brand-name oral prescription drugs rose more than 9 percent a year from 2008 and 2016, while the annual cost of injectable drugs rose more than

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