What can the FDA do about the cost of drugs?
We understand that drug prices have a direct impact on the ability of people to cope with their illnesses as well as meet other expenses. However, FDA has no legal authority to investigate or control the prices charged for marketed drugs. Manufacturers, distributors and retailers establish these prices. FDA recognizes that other factors beyond its purview, including insurance coverage and drug pricing, can determine patient access to drugs. These factors have been receiving increasing public attention and public debate. On October 25, 1999, President Clinton directed the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to produce the first-ever HHS study of prescription drug costs and trends for Medicare beneficiaries. This study will investigate price differences for the most commonly used drugs for people with and without coverage; drug spending by people of various ages, as a percentage of income and of total health spending; and trends in drug expenditures by people of different ages,
