The rising cost of Medicare grows ever more quickly. While last year it increased by only 4.6 percent, this year it is projected to increase by 7.9 percent. At the heart of this change is a near-doubling of the amount paid for prescription drugs, and at the heart of this issue lies Hepatitis C.
Hepatitus C (or “Hep C”) is a viral illness, usually spread by contact with infected blood, which gradually destroys the liver in a painful manner. It affects approximately 3 million people in the US, and kills more people than AIDS here. Patients who have the disease have disease described it as feeling like a bad flu that never goes away, according to The Associated Press. Previously, the available medications were unreliable, and had side effects that most patients were unable to tolerate. However, new medications have recently come out which can reliably cure the disease, and with minimal side effects.
And treatments cost a large amount — $80,000 to $100,000, reported KWTX. Medicare will be spending over $9 Billion this year alone on Hep C treatments
While this is a good news for afflicted patients, it hits anyone paying Medicare premiums in the pocketbook, whether or not they have the disease or are buying the drugs. And treatments cost a large amount — $80,000 to $100,000, reported KWTX. Medicare will be spending over $9 Billion this year alone on Hep C treatments, almost doubling what it spent last year.
The rising concern about this increase in Medicare costs has caught the attention of politicians vying for victory in the 2016 Presidential Race. Next week, the federal Department of Health and Human Services plans to hold an open forum in which people will be able to talk about the high cost of new drugs.
Of course, this is a difficult balancing act. While on the one hand it is desirable to keep new drugs affordable, drug companies still need to be rewarded for the research and money they put into developing the drug.
