Americans are spending more on prescription drugs than anyone else in the world.
Why? Part of it is because the United States drug pricing system is set up differently than everyone else. While other countries, like the United Kingdom, have regulatory agencies that determine whether a drug should come to market and can then negotiate a price consumers will pay, the US market doesn’t. So pharmaceutical companies can charge whatever they want.
But each system has its trade-offs: A regulated system keeps prices low but can restrict access to some drugs. The US system allows full access to drugs, but often they’re too expensive to even afford. Americans without insurance are the most likely to skip medication because of the cost. Americans who have insurance are the second most likely.
Check out the video above or Sarah Kliff’s reporting for more.
You can find this video and all of Vox’s videos on YouTube. And if you’re interested in supporting our video journalism, you can become a member of the Vox Video Lab on YouTube.
Will you support Vox’s explanatory journalism?
Most news outlets make their money through advertising or subscriptions. But when it comes to what we’re trying to do at Vox, there are a couple of big issues with relying on ads and subscriptions to keep the lights on:
First, advertising dollars go up and down with the economy. We often only know a few months out what our advertising revenue will be, which makes it hard to plan ahead.
Second, we’re not in the subscriptions business. Vox is here to help everyone understand the complex issues shaping the world — not just the people who can afford to pay for a subscription. We believe that’s an important part of building a more equal society. And we can’t do that if we have a paywall.
So even though advertising is still our biggest source of revenue, we also seek grants and reader support. (And no matter how our work is funded, we have strict guidelines on editorial independence.)
If you also believe that everyone deserves access to trusted high-quality information, will you make a gift to Vox today? Any amount helps.
Yes, I'll give $5/month
Yes, I'll give $5/month
We accept credit card, Apple Pay, and
Google Pay. You can also contribute via
