Poll Finds Drug Price Regulation Support

Nearly two-thirds of people surveyed on healthcare costs said they wanted the federal government to become more involved in limiting the price of prescription drugs, according to a poll released Thursday by the nonprofit Kaiser Family Foundation.

Sixty-five percent of the 1,200 adults polled said they wanted more government regulation of drug prices, while 14% said there was too much regulation.

Forty-six percent said they would back more price regulation even if it might lead to less research and development, as drug makers contend.

The federal Medicare program will implement broad prescription drug coverage starting next January, although legally Medicare officials are not allowed to negotiate drug prices with manufacturers.

However, other government agencies such as the Department of Defense do negotiate prices.

The telephone poll was conducted during the first week of February by the Menlo Park, Calif.-based health research group.

Half of those surveyed reported taking a prescription drug daily.

Despite recent controversies about drug side effects, 77% of people polled said they were “very” or “somewhat” confident in the Food and Drug Administration’s ability to ensure drug safety. The poll’s margin of error was plus or minus 3 percentage points.