The topic of drug prices and how their ever-increasing rates have impacted American consumers has been at the forefront of healthcare discussions for some time. Rising costs of prescriptions have led to calls for price and utilization controls by public and private payers.

At the center of the issue is the fact that medical progress and innovation has become expensive. With the health status of Americans improving, this has led to an increase in the cost of medicines.

In 2014, Americans filled 4.3 billion prescriptions and paid about $374 billion in medicines, according to data from the IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics. The data indicated the spending reached its highest level since 2001, up by 13 percent compared to 2013.

Demand has also increased with the addition of millions of insured Americans under the Affordable Care Act. In states that have expanded Medicare eligibility under the ACA, patients filled 25.4 percent more prescriptions, and in those that did not the increase was 2.8 percent.

Undoubtedly, consumers are gradually feeling the burden of having to pay more than they are used to, particularly as it relates to the price of generic drugs. In fact, those consumers who are using their health insurance copayments are often paying more compared to simply paying cash for their prescriptions.

This phenomenon can be related to benefit management firms taking a portion of the payment that patients make to pharmacies, as well as other factors that can include health policies that set high copayments and deductibles. Ultimately, consumers can have the final say in terms of whether they wish to pay these prices, and this requires shopping around and evaluating the different prices to avoid paying too much.

Another area where consumers are experiencing the effects of price increase is with biosimilars. Medicare beneficiaries are paying more for biosimilars in comparison to brand medications because the biosimilars are not discounted under the Part D coverage gap. While the program itself may save money if beneficiaries take biosimilars, patients may be unable to afford the out-of-pocket costs of these agents.

In an effort to resolve this problem, several policies in development may help to reduce the associated cost of biosimilars. These policies include making manufacturers provide discounts that will close the coverage gap that exists for biosimilars, or developing a biosimilar tier that would reduce the costs beneficiaries face. There is the potential for these two options to decrease consumer costs and enable more access to these agents.

In conclusion, drug pricing and the barrier that it can cause for patients' access to medications is one that requires the involvement of consumers, healthcare officials and government policymakers to find a middle ground where benefits managers, drug manufacturers and consumers can all benefit.