Prices for Top Prescription Drugs Rise in U.S., Fall Abroad

The 25 most popular brand-name medications increased in price by an average of 81 percent since their U.S. launch, a new AARP report finds

Rachel Nania,

AARP

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Published May 28, 2026

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Americans are paying more for popular brand-name prescription drugs, even as prices for the same medications fall or stay the same in other high-income countries.

Prices for the top 25 brand-name drugs have increased by an average of 81 percent since they entered the U.S. market, according to a new report from AARP’s Public Policy Institute. In 19 other high-income countries, prices of those same drugs have fallen by an average of 13 percent.

These 25 drugs — which treat conditions such as type 2 diabetes, blood clots and cancer — accounted for more than $100 billion in total Medicare prescription drug spending in 2024 and were used by nearly 15 million Medicare beneficiaries.

“These findings highlight another factor in the U.S.’s comparatively high brand-name drug prices, as well as the potential of ongoing efforts to better align U.S. drug prices with the prices paid in other high-income countries,” says Leigh Purvis, AARP’s prescription drug policy principal and the author of the new report.

Rx prices keep rising

Americans shouldn’t pay the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs. High Rx prices force many Americans 50-plus to choose between paying for medicine or basics like groceries. AARP advocates are fighting so Medicare can keep negotiating the prices it pays for prescription drugs — because Americans shouldn't keep paying the highest prices in the world.

Add your name and speak up for lower Rx prices.

The high cost of expensive drugs

Why are brand-name drug prices higher in the U.S.? Many countries have the ability to negotiate a drug’s price shortly after it’s approved, AARP’s report states, but in the U.S., drug companies set the prices. These companies can raise prices over time; other countries typically have policies that lower drug prices after they enter the market.

AARP’s latest report found that list prices for 24 of the 25 drugs rose anywhere from 14 to 873 percent after entering the market. Enbrel, used to treat autoimmune conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, saw the largest increase. In other comparable countries, the prices for 24 out of the 25 drugs decreased by 1 to 42 percent.

The result is higher prices for many medications — a burden that falls especially hard on older Americans.

Most older adults take at least one prescription medication, and many take several, according to a 2026 study published in JAMA Network Open. A widely cited report from the Lown Institute found that 42 percent of adults 65 and older take five or more prescription medications.

Research from AARP found that roughly 60 percent of adults age 50 and older say they are concerned about their ability to afford prescription drugs in the next few years. About 4 in 10 U.S. adults say they have not taken their medication as prescribed in the past year due to costs, according to a 2026 poll from the health policy nonprofit KFF.

This so-called medication nonadherence is estimated to cause 1 in 10 hospitalizations and approximately 125,000 deaths annually in the U.S., a 2024 study suggests.

Americans want lower Rx drug prices

Federal efforts are underway to lower prescription drug prices in the U.S., and research shows there is strong, bipartisan support for such policies.

A law passed in 2022 that allows Medicare to negotiate prices for its most widely used, high-cost drugs is expected to save enrollees $1.5 billion this year — and the savings are expected to grow. So far, prices have been negotiated for 25 commonly used brand-name prescription medications.

Lower prices for 10 drugs are already in effect, with 15 more set to take effect Jan. 1, 2027. Another 15 drugs have been selected for price negotiations that will take effect on Jan. 1, 2028, and 20 additional drugs will be selected and negotiated each year going forward.

The latest report from AARP’s Public Policy Institute found that six of the top 25 drugs saw a one-time price drop in the U.S. after years of steady increases. These six medications — Linzess, Jardiance, Eliquis, Januvia, Imbruvica and Ibrance — are all subject to Medicare price negotiation.

However, the prices of six other drugs selected for Medicare price negotiation were not lowered, which indicates “that the significant price reductions obtained through Medicare drug price negotiation do not necessarily translate into lower prices for other payers,” Purvis explains, and that additional reforms are needed to improve prescription drug affordability more broadly.

The current administration is leading efforts to align U.S. prescription drug prices with prices paid in peer countries — a policy known as Most Favored Nation (MFN) drug pricing. Through deals made with drugmakers, some manufacturers have agreed to make their medications available to state Medicaid programs at MFN prices and to sell certain drugs directly to consumers at discounted prices.

“Alternatively,” Purvis writes, “the U.S. could build on ideas derived from other developed countries, such as negotiating drug prices shortly after they are approved or expanding the universe of drugs that can be negotiated, to develop a uniquely American approach to ensuring that all Americans can afford the drugs they need.”

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