Affording Prescription Drugs: Not Just a Problem for the Elderly

Policymakers have devoted much attention recently to expanding outpatient prescription drug coverage for elderly persons. New findings from the 2000-01 Community Tracking Study household survey show that many nonelderly adults also have problems affording prescription drugs. The problem is particularly serious among persons who are uninsured or enrolled in Medicaid, of whom about one out of four in each group reported that they couldn’t afford a prescription medication. The high rate of access problems among Medicaid enrollees is particularly significant given that all state Medicaid programs provide coverage for prescription drugs. State efforts to control Medicaid prescription drug costs are also contributing to access problems among beneficiaries. Introduction Policymakers are focusing on ways to extend coverage for prescription medications to millions of elderly Medicare beneficiaries who currently aren’t covered through the Medicare program and have no other source of coverage. However, it is often overlooked that many nonelderly adults also have problems affording prescription medications. While most nonelderly adults have prescription drug coverage through employer-sponsored health insurance or the Medicaid program, over 26 million lack health insurance coverage for any kind of medical care. This is more than twice the number of elderly Medicare beneficiaries who don’t have prescription drug coverage.