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Best Buy Drugs is a health project which seeks to report the value of drugs which consumers choose to buy. Among the most effective drugs, Best Buy Drugs makes recommendations based on cost. Best Buy Drugs is a project managed by Consumer Reports.
Projects[edit]
Best Buy Drugs reports value by identifying the most effective drugs, then among those, recommending the ones with the lowest cost.[1] A goal of the project is to prevent consumers from spending more money than necessary on drugs.[2] An example of the sort of consumer benefit which the program tries to create would be informing patients that for many popular drugs, they can switch from a drug costing US$4 per day to one that had an equivalent effect but which cost US$1 per day and thereby save US$1,000 in a year.[1]
Best Buy Drugs reports cover more than 25 classes of drugs and 35 medical conditions.[3] It takes comparative effectiveness research data from the Drug Effectiveness Review Project and other sources, adds information about drug prices, then makes a purchase recommendation for the consumer which it designates as a "best buy drug".[2] The guidance is intended to help consumers save money and reduce the overall amount of money spent on drugs in the United States.[2]
The program raises awareness of programs which sell discounted generic drugs, and directs consumers away from buying overpriced branded drugs.[3] It promotes education about generic drugs, including teaching the concept of bioequivalence and highlighting FDA reports that brand name drugs are not safer than generic ones.[3]
Best Buy Drugs is a response to the perception that people in America have difficulty understanding the choices they make in purchasing drugs and paying for the medicine they need. A survey conducted by Consumer Reports on people in the United States found that about 20% of people have asked their doctor for a drug they had seen advertised on television, and that in most cases, their doctor gave them a prescription for that drug.[3] Of the program, a spokesperson from Consumer Reports said, "One of the most serious problems in health care today is that tens of millions of Americans aren't taking the medicines they need, in large part because they can't afford them.[1] By identifying lower-cost medicines that are every bit as effective, we hope to change that."[1] Another said "Consumers and their doctors need credible, unbiased information on the comparative effectiveness and safety of prescription drugs with national-level data on drug prices."[1]
Funding[edit]
In May 2004, Best Buy Drugs was established with a grant from the US$38 million consumer protection settlement which resulted from Franklin v. Parke-Davis, which concerned Pfizer's marketing of the drug gabapentin.[4][5][6] The Engelberg Foundation was also an funder of the initiative.[7]
In 2008, Best Buy Drugs was further funded by a settlement from the same case.[6] An article in 2008 noted that Best Buy Drugs had received funding from the National Library of Medicine.[8]In 2014 Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum announced that US$3.3 million would be awarded to Best Buy Drugs over three years so that the project could continue its work.[6]
Partners[edit]
The American Public Health Association is a partner of the program.[1]
The program gets information from Oregon Health & Science University and the Drug Effectiveness Review Project.[3]
An educational outreach project using Best Buy Drugs information presented it to a population in Minnesota which was using medications.[9] In this population, practically all participants found relevant information in the Best Buy Drugs literature.[9] A third of the participants went on to ask their physician questions based on what they learned, and a different third asked questions of their pharmacist.[9] The estimated cost savings of applying Best Buy Drugs guidance in this population's purchase decisions was about US$157 per month among those people who purchased their own medications.[9]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e f Arias, Donya C. (2005). "Comparison of Costs, Safety and Effectiveness of Drugs Now Online: Consumers Union Debuts 'Best Buy Drugs'". The Nation's Health. 35 (1). Retrieved 1 October 2014.
- ^ a b c Findlay, S. D. (2006). "Bringing The DERP To Consumers: 'Consumer Reports Best Buy Drugs'". Health Affairs. 25 (4): W283–W286. doi:10.1377/hlthaff.25.w283. ISSN 0278-2715.
- ^ a b c d e The Pharma Letter (2 September 2011). "US Consumer Reports: Best drugs for what ails you, plus where to buy them for $4 a month". thepharmaletter.com. Retrieved 1 October 2014.
- ^ The Wikipedia article on the court case is Franklin v. Parke-Davis. The defending party changed during the court case from Warner-Lambert to Parke-Davis to Pfizer as companies merged, and various sources use each of these names.
- ^ Oregon Department of Justice (April 24, 2008). "AG ANNOUNCES $4 MILLION GRANT TO CONSUMERS UNION; CU TO PROVIDE FREE, UNBIASED INFORMATION ON BUYING PRESCRIPTION DRUGS". doj.state.or.us. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|1=(help) - ^ a b c Oregon Department of Justice (21 April 2014). "AG ROSENBLUM ANNOUNCES ADDITIONAL $3.3 MILLION GRANT TO EDUCATE MORE CONSUMERS ON PRESCRIPTION DRUGS". Retrieved 1 October 2014.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ Voelker, Rebecca (2005). "Easy-to-Use Drug Reports Help Patients and Physicians Weigh Costs, Benefits". JAMA. 294 (2): 165. doi:10.1001/jama.294.2.165. ISSN 0098-7484.
- ^ staff writer (2008). "Are You Shopping Smart for Prescription Drugs?". MedlinePlus. 3 (1): 17.
- ^ a b c d Schommer, Jon C.; Worley, Marcia M.; Schondelmeyer, Stephen (2013). "Consumer Reports - Best Buy Drugs' Outreach Project in Minnesota" (PDF). Innovations in Pharmacy. 4 (2). University of Minnesota. article 111.
