More US patients abandoning filling new drug scripts, taking more power over Rx decisions in tough economic climate

The results of a new Pharma Insight study released from Wolters Kluwer Pharma Solutions, a pharma/biotech information provider, is not exactly what the doctor ordered. The company's annual analysis of the US pharmaceutical market suggests that the economy has led to increased patient participation in decisions about prescription drugs. What may be more striking, is that the rising influence is often at odds with that of a patient's physician, it points out.

The report shows that commercial health plan patients abandoned new prescriptions at the pharmacy at a rate of 6.3% in 2009, which is up 24% over 2008. Consumers are becoming more price-sensitive toward pharmaceuticals, especially to brand-name medications. According to the data, the abandonment rate for new prescriptions of brand-name drugs alone was 8.6% in 2009, up 23% from 2008, and an astounding 68% since 2006. A prescription is considered abandoned when a script is submitted to a pharmacy but never picked up.

66% generics filled, vs 50% in 2005