The rising cost of medicines may be a growing problem for many Americans, but a new survey finds that cost is generally not a key factor when doctors decide which treatments to prescribe their patients.
Among six different types of doctors queried, only primary care physicians cited cost as among their most important considerations. Forty-seven percent ranked the issue as a key concern, behind evidence that a drug is safe, effective and well-tolerated.
The various specialists – oncologists, cardiologists, neurologists, dermatologists and pulmonologists – also named these attributes as the most important issues to consider. But cost was much less of a consideration compared with 10 other concerns that were cited, according to the survey CMI/Compas, a market research firm that queried more than 800 doctors last June.
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