Pocketbook
Solutions
Real relief, right at the pharmacy counter
Americans for Health Excellence is advocating for practical fixes that put money back in patients' pockets the next time they're standing at the pharmacy counter. Our Pocketbook Solutions are four concrete steps Congress can take right now to make prescription medications more affordable for seniors, families, and everyone in between.
See the SolutionsHealthcare costs are a top
concern for Americans.
A national survey of 2,000 likely voters conducted by McLaughlin & Associates found overwhelming, bipartisan support for a set of direct, tangible fixes that deliver savings patients can actually see. These aren't abstract policy ideas, they're solutions voters across the political spectrum are already asking for.
of voters name
health insurance
cost as their
#1 healthcare
concern
Four practical fixes. One goal: lower the costs patients pay at the pharmacy counter.
The Pocketbook
Solutions
Americans with private insurance can already use manufacturer co-pay cards to lower what they pay for prescription medications. Seniors on Medicare can't. This solution simply extends the same savings tool to the patients who often need it most — those on fixed incomes managing multiple prescriptions.
Sometimes paying cash for a prescription is less expensive than going through insurance. However, those payments currently don’t count toward a patient's deductible or out-of-pocket maximum. Requiring insurers to count every dollar a patient spends on a covered medicine toward their deductible would save the patients and insurers money.
Example: Every Dollar Counts Act
- House: H.R. 8270
- Rep. Greg Murphy (R-NC)
Right now, what seniors pay for prescriptions can be unpredictable month to month. Implementing a flat out-of-pocket cap, tiered by income, provides seniors on fixed incomes with a number they can actually plan around.
For decades, wealthy foreign governments have capped what they pay for American-invented medicines — shifting the cost of innovation onto U.S. patients. Ending foreign freeloading and ensuring other countries are paying their fair share for American medications would not only ensure our patients pay less, but it would protect our innovation pipeline.
Example: USTRx Act
- House: H.R. 4780
- Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-TX)
- Senate: S. 5265
- Sen. Tim Sheehy (R-MT)
Patients Shouldn't
Have to Wait.
These are commonsense, bipartisan solutions that voters overwhelmingly support. Now it's time for Congress to act.
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