To save money, almost a quarter of uninsured American adults did not take medications as prescribed or asked physicians for lower-cost medications, according to a report from the National Center for Health Statistics.
Data from the 2011 National Health Interview Survey show that 23.1% of uninsured respondents aged 18-64 years skipped doses, took less medicine, or delayed filling prescriptions and that 24.3% asked a doctor for a lower-cost alternative. Among the uninsured, 11.9% used alternative therapies to save money and 4.9% bought prescription drugs from another country, the NCHS said.
Among respondents aged 18-64 years with private insurance, 18.9% asked a doctor for a lower-cost medication, compared with 15.1% of those on Medicaid; however, more Medicaid recipients (13.6%) did not take medication as prescribed, compared with those who had private coverage (8.7%), the report noted.
