Millions of Americans are skipping doses because they can't afford their prescription drugs

• About 8.2% of adults in the US didn't take a prescription drug as prescribed because of the cost.
• The problem was worse for people who don't have insurance and for those in poor health.

Millions of Americans are skimping on their prescription drugs to cut costs, a government report shows, revealing how the high cost of US healthcare can harm people's health.

About 8.2% of adults in the US didn't take a prescription medicine as prescribed due to the cost, according to a US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey of people ages 18-64 conducted in 2021 and published this month. The problem was more severe among people with lower incomes and those in poor health.

The report illustrates one way that the high cost of US healthcare and uneven insurance coverage can make it harder for people to get the medical care they need. Surveys and researchers have repeatedly found that the cost of medical care can make people skip appointments and forego needed treatments.

"High costs may limit individuals' access to medications and lead to people not taking medication as prescribed, Laryssa Mykyta and Robin A. Cohen, the CDC researchers, wrote in the report. "This may result in more serious illness and require additional treatment."

Unsurprisingly, people without health insurance and those with lower incomes were more likely to skimp on their prescriptions. 22.9% of those without insurance and 14.5% of people whose income was below the poverty line didn't take their medicines as prescribed. Similarly, 18% of people in fair or poor health sometimes skipped doses or delayed filling their scripts to cut costs.

Any kind of insurance coverage helps. Just 8% of people covered by Medicaid, the federal-state insurance program for those with low incomes, reported that they didn't take their medications as prescribed due to cost.