45 percent of Americans can no longer afford prescriptions

Big Pharma's profiteering has reached the breaking point: 45 percent of Americans can no longer afford prescriptions


(NaturalNews) Drug companies have gotten so greedy, and the American
public so financially distressed, that nearly half of all Americans
under the age of 65 who normally take prescription drugs are no longer
doing so because they allegedly cannot afford it. This is according to a
new report compiled by the Consumer Reports National Research Center
(CRNRC), which also found that 63 percent of those in need of medical
care are skipping trips to the doctor because of the high costs
involved.

Based on a poll that included 1,158 adults over the age
of 18, CRNRC found that 62 percent of Americans under the age of 65
avoided getting recommended medical tests in 2012 because of high costs,
while just over half avoided getting a recommended medical procedure.
In total, more than 80 percent of those polled indicated that they
skipped either a medically-related procedure, medical test, doctor
visit, or prescription because of the expense.

"When it comes to
prescription drugs, consumers are spending on average $63 out of pocket
every month, which can easily swallow up a big portion of the family
budget," said Lisa Gill, prescription drugs editor for Consumer Reports,
in a recent press release about the findings. "It's even worse for
those without insurance for medicines, who pay upwards of $91 a month
for their prescriptions."

The number of adult patients under the
age of 65 who skipped a doctor visit because they could not afford it
jumped 16 percent last year, while the number who avoided a prescription
jumped 19 percent. These same individuals cut various other things out
of their lives as well, according to the report, including leisure
activities, dining out, and entertainment.

According to the data,
28 percent of adults under the age of 65 with prescription drug
benefits said they have cut back on entertainment and dining out because
of financial difficulties. And 58 percent of those without benefits, or
more than twice the number of those with benefits, indicated a
reduction in these activities. Similar cut-backs were also observed
among both groups for increased credit card use and a reduction in the
amount of groceries purchased.

A similar survey conducted by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation back in June found that roughly 60 percent of Americans avoided the doctor, eliminated or modified the doses of their prescriptions,
avoided diagnostic tests, or otherwise altered their normal healthcare
regimen to save money. The average cost of health care for a family of
four with an employer-sponsored insurance plan also topped $20,000 for
the first time ever this year.


Source:-
http://www.naturalnews.com/037368_Big_Pharma_profiteering_prescriptions.html