text: Older Americans Don't Get Enough Help From Doctors & Pharmacists on Drug Costs - Fifty Plus Life
  Older Americans Don't Get Enough Help From Doctors & Pharmacists on Drug Costs
  Posted on 04 July 2017. Tags: costs, doctors, drug, poll, seniors
  The majority of Americans age 50 and older take two or more prescription medicines to prevent or treat health problems, and many of them say the cost weighs on their budget, a new poll finds.
  Cost Burdens And Communication
  Although addressing the broader concern of drug costs will require shifts in policy, patients can take some immediate steps, by asking their doctors and pharmacists for help, Malani said. Future programs should encourage health professionals and patients to routinely have these discussions.
  The need to talk cost may start earlier than one might think, Malani notes. The poll finds that more than half of adults in the 50-64 age range were taking two or more medications — and that 14 percent of them were taking six medications or more.
  More Resources on Prescription Costs
  ✔️ AARP issued a special report on drug costs, and offers tips for talking about cost and other issues with doctors and pharmacists. An AARP poll last year found that 81 percent of people over age 50 think drug prices are too high, and that of those who had not filled a prescription they'd been given in the last two years, more than half had done so because of cost.
  ✔️ A recent Kaiser Family Foundation poll found that more than half of Americans think that lowering prescription drug costs should be a top priority for the federal government.
  ✔️ The National Institute on Aging offers a toolkit for clinicians on communicating with older patients about issues including medication management and cost.