If you went “anywhere in the world,” you could get a prescription filled for 40% to 60% less than it costs in the U.S.
Joe Biden on Feb. 22, 2024, at a campaign reception
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It’s well documented that Americans pay high prices for health care. But do they pay double or more for prescriptions compared with the rest of the world? President Joe Biden said they did.
“If I put you on Air Force One with me, and you have a prescription — no matter what it’s for, minor or major — and I flew you to Toronto or flew to London or flew you to Brazil or flew you anywhere in the world, I can get you that prescription filled for somewhere between 40 to 60% less than it costs here,” Biden said Feb. 22 at a campaign reception in California.
He followed up by touting provisions in the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act to lower drug prices, including capping insulin at $35 a month for Medicare enrollees and limiting older Americans’ out-of-pocket prescription spending to $2,000 a year starting in 2025. The law also authorized Medicare to negotiate prices directly with drug companies for 10 prescription drugs, a list that will expand over time.
Research has consistently found that, overall, U.S. prescription drug prices are significantly higher, sometimes two to four times as high, compared with prices in other high-income industrialized countries. Unbranded generic drugs are an exception and are typically cheaper in the U.S. compared with other countries. (Branded generics, a different category, are close to breaking even with other countries.)
However, such factors as country-specific pricing, confidential rebates, and other discounts can obscure actual prices, making comparisons harder.
“The available evidence suggests that the U.S., on average, has higher prices for prescription drugs, and that’s particularly true for brand-name drugs,” said Cynthia Cox, director of the Peterson-KFF Health…
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