The overarching goal of employer-provided health plans is to offer high quality coverage at low out-of-pocket (OOP) costs, encouraging employees to actually use their health benefits rather than ration and defer care. Perhaps nowhere is this commitment more crucial than in the Rx area where costs have been soaring for decades — but employers can put the brakes on significant year-over-year increases with the help of an international pharmacy program.
With nearly half of U.S. adults ages 20 to 59 taking at least one prescription medication, drug price increases affect a high percentage of any working population. GoodRx research shows that list prices (also known as Wholesale Acquisition Cost) have increased by 32% for all drugs since 2014. It’s not all that surprising, considering that every year manufacturers raise prices in January and July. In January 2021, the average increase was 4.6%, more than double the inflation rate at that time.
