While employers are paying a light-weight half percent increase in medical costs annually, pharmacy costs are rising to nearly 10 percent a year, according to benefits consultant Aon Hewitt.
The inflation in pharmaceuticals threatens to overwhelm insurance plans, forcing higher co-pays and greater reliance on generic drugs. Insurance companies are increasingly asking doctors to get pre-approval for expensive drugs.
Some drugs cancer drugs cost as much as $13,500 per month. One benefits specialist quoted in the Wall Street Journal said these new drugs account for 28 percent of drug costs, while serving only 1 percent of insured clients.
The drugs cost so much that employers feel they must know if patients are taking the entire amount. Some split-fill programs authorize only two weeks of a drug. A nurse then interviews the patient to make sure he or she has not stopped taking the drug.
Rick Good spent ten years in the newspaper business, including with The News & Observer (Raleigh, NC) and The Greenville News (Greenville, SC). He co-wrote, with Melinda Coleman, Rutledge to Riley: Governors of South Carolina, 1776–Present (Published by The Greenville News), and is the author of Mind Games Trivia #1 (Amazon). He has recently spent 15 years creating original trivia content through Sounds Good Mobile Entertainment and continues that with his new company, SGME Software. He edits The Smart Reader’s money, real estate, and business coverage.