| ■ More Americans Doing Without Prescription Drugs | 2009.06.08 |
| With the economic downturn, more Americans are unable to afford the prescription medications they need to manage life-threatening conditions, The New York Times reported. Even with the Medicare drug benefit, the wide availability of low-cost generics and discounting by big chain stores, national surveys consistently show that as many as a third of respondents say they're not filling prescriptions because of cost. That's up from about a quarter of respondents three years ago. The problem is common in hard-hit communities like Rocky Mount, N.C., where unemployment has doubled to 14 percent in a year. Dr. John T. Avent, a physician at a low-income clinic, told The Times that at least 80 percent of his patients aren't taking prescribed medicines for conditions such as high blood pressure or diabetes. |