The International Federation of Health Plans (iFHP) released its 2015 Comparative Price Report, detailing its annual survey of medical prices per unit.
Designed to showcase the variation in healthcare prices around the world, the report examines the price of medical procedures, tests, scans and treatments in seven countries and shows the extreme pricing discrepancy for seven specialty prescription drugs, according to a press release from iFHP.
While medical procedure costs vary or are relatively level across countries, there are large disparities in prescription and specialty drug prices, the press release notes.
- Prescription pain medication, OxyContin, cost only $36 in Spain, but jumps to an average cost of $265 in the United States and $590 in the United Kingdom.
- Other known drugs such as Truvada, prescribed for treating HIV/AIDS, cost less than $1,000 in Spain, United Kingdom and Switzerland, but cost an average $1,290 in the United States.
- Similarly, Humira, a drug prescribed for rheumatoid arthritis has prices ranging from $552 in South Africa to an average $2,669 in the United States.
Prices examined in the study included those from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom and United States.
