GoodRx Users Save an Average $30B on Prescription Drug Costs

June 23, 2021 - Consumers have saved nearly $30 billion on their prescription drug costs to date with prices found on the GoodRx platform, the company said in a report.

In 2020, GoodRx users saved an average 79 percent off retail prescription drug prices for the 100 most purchased medications, based on the pharmacies’ usual and customary prices. 

For example, consumers purchasing diabetes medications saved an average 37 percent on the retail price of these drugs. Similar discounts saved patients nearly 84 percent off the price of high cholesterol medication and an average of 72 percent off the price of hypertension medication.  

Patients also saved an average of 82 percent off medications to treat depression and 70 percent off medications to treat anxiety. 

Just over half of patients (53 percent) have poor medication adherence because their prescriptions are too expensive and 29 percent said they did not take a medication because it took too long to fill, according to February 2020 data from Surescripts.

GoodRx has helped patients save nearly $60 per prescription, contributing to an increase in medication adherence of 25 percent, from 45 percent to nearly 70 percent. Overall, patients can obtain at least 78 million prescriptions they otherwise may have not been able to afford.

Better medication adherence can improve health outcomes by slowing the progression of disease and avoiding unnecessary hospitalizations. Specifically, the company’s offered discounts have contributed to the prevention of over 1,000 avoidable hospitalizations and helped save nearly 500 lives. 

“Poor medication adherence can be very costly, both for the individual patient as well as the healthcare system as a whole. In some cases, medication adherence can mean the difference between life and death,” researchers said. 

“By helping people price shop and providing discounts on prescription drugs, GoodRx makes taking medication more affordable. For many GoodRx users, this means the difference between adhering to their prescribed regimen or skipping treatment altogether,” they continued.  

An estimated $105 billion of healthcare spending in the US could be avoided with better medication adherence. For example, the average cost of hospitalization from a heart attack is $73,300, and the average cost of hospitalization from a stroke is $20,000.

With fewer hospitalizations, GoodRx has helped save the healthcare system over $60 million in avoidable hospitalization costs, researchers highlighted. 

GoodRx is also able to help when insurance coverage for medications comes up short. 

A separate GoodRx analysis of Medicare Part D formulary data from 2014 to 2020 showed that Americans face challenges when more restrictions are placed on covered drugs.

Privately insured patients see greater cost-sharing through deductibles and coinsurance, which leaves them facing higher out-of-pocket costs. 

In 2020, over 55 percent of prescriptions filled using GoodRx were cheaper than the average commercial insurance copays for the 100 most purchased medications, based on industry data.

Specifically, GoodRx users saved nearly 52 percent off average commercial insurance copays last year.

According to researchers, the best GoodRx discount price available, regardless of geographic proximity and convenience, beats the average commercial insurance copayment 89 percent of the time.

“At GoodRx, our mission is to help people get the healthcare they need at a price they can afford,” researchers said. “As we grow, we strive to fill gaps in more parts of everyone’s healthcare journey so that all Americans — regardless of income or insurance status — have the knowledge, choice, and care they need to stay healthy.”