Survey: More Than Half of Americans Struggle to Afford Prescription Medications

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Many people continue to feel the pressures of inflation on their pocketbooks. And despite policies intended to improve healthcare affordability, the cost of medications is still too steep for a large number of Americans.

For the fifth consecutive year, GoodRx Research surveyed Americans to find out how they're dealing with medication costs. Below, we highlight some of our key findings.

Most Americans continue to deal with high medication costs

GoodRx Research surveyed over 900 people who filled a prescription in 2023 about their healthcare expenses. Over 64% of Americans said that the cost of their prescription medications was a financial burden. Specifically:

• 30.9% reported a minor burden

• 21.3% reported a moderate burden

• 9.9% reported a significant burden

• 2.2% reported a catastrophic burden

Prescription medications are just one of many priorities for household budgets. But amid rising prices for many essentials, being able to afford healthcare is still a top concern for Americans.

Nearly 30% of respondents who took a prescription medication worried about being able to afford their medications in the last year. And, as the chart below shows, more people reported worrying about affording their medications than being able to afford food, housing, and transportation.

Even though prices for medical care and medications have increased more slowly than other categories of spending, Americans are still struggling to afford their prescriptions.

Many Americans face difficult tradeoffs to afford their medications

To afford their prescriptions, 37% of people reported taking action that could harm their lifestyle and personal finances.

People most commonly cut spending on leisure activities, followed by food and clothing. About 15% of people dipped into their savings to afford their medications, while 8% sold personal belongings. Finally, 11% borrowed money to pay for their medications, while 13% adjusted their or their family's employment to pay for their medications.

Over 40% of people took some kind of financial action to afford their healthcare expenses. The most commonly reported financial action was taking on credit card debt (23%), followed by borrowing from family and friends (18%).

A third of people reported a change in their medication adherence due to cost. The most commonly reported changes were delaying a refill after running out, switching to a more affordable alternative, and rationing medication to extend a prescription. While less common, some resorted to stopping their medication entirely or purchasing medications from another country in order to save money.

These changes in medication adherence can be dangerous for patients who are prescribed medications for chronic conditions or life-threatening illnesses.

Consumers are getting creative to afford their medications

When prescriptions are too expensive, people may take steps to make sure they can get their medications. In fact, over 70% of people reported tapping resources outside of traditional health insurance to access their medication.

Most commonly, people took advantage of discount programs such as GoodRx (35%) and free samples (35%) to get their medications. They also reported actively seeking lower prices, either through price-shopping at pharmacies (26%) or asking their healthcare professional (HCP) for a less expensive medication (27%). People also used manufacturer copay cards.

Some alternative methods respondents used to obtain medications were risky. These included replacing a prescription with nonprescribed supplements and using medications that were prescribed to someone else.

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