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Pharmaceutical Drugs

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Although pharmaceutical drugs on the whole greatly improve patient outcomes and quality of life when used as prescribed, they are not without their complications. RAND research on pharmaceuticals examines their safety and effectiveness, relevant health economics issues, prescription drug abuse, challenges related to access and adherence, and pharmaceutical regulatory policy.

Essay
America's Opioid Crisis: Adopting an Ecosystem Approach
The opioid crisis is metastasizing throughout society, reaching across public health and public safety, but also education, employment, and the child welfare system. Without profound change and new approaches to the crisis, hundreds of thousands of people could die in the coming years.
Jun 30, 2023
Commentary
Medicare Drug Price Negotiation: Key Decisions to Reach a 'Fair Price'
Government negotiation of Medicare drug prices—even for a small set of older, single-source drugs—is a remarkable policy development. But how exactly will the government do it?
Nov 7, 2022

Explore Pharmaceutical Drugs

Journal Article
Trends in Personal and Family Member Opioid Prescriptions Prior to a Diagnosis of an Opioid-Related Problem Among Adolescents and Young Adults
This study examined the proportion of adolescents and young adults who had an opioid-related problem and who also had a personal opioid prescription drug claim or had a family member with an opioid prescription drug claim prior to the diagnosis.
Nov 15, 2023
Journal Article
Evaluating the Effectiveness of Email-Based Nudges to Reduce Postoperative Opioid Prescribing: Study Protocol of a Randomised Controlled Trial
Study protocol of a randomized controlled trial testing the effectiveness of two behavioral nudges, one based on peer behavior and one based on best practice guidelines, in reducing excessive postoperative opioid prescriptions.
Oct 30, 2023
Testimony
Improving Treatment Outcomes for Veterans with Mental Health Conditions
Current treatments for veterans experiencing PTSD and other mental health conditions are largely effective but they do not work for everyone. More treatments that yield better outcomes are needed. With sustained research investment and careful planning, psychedelic-assisted therapies hold great promise to improve care for veterans.
Oct 19, 2023
Journal Article
County-Level Sociodemographic Characteristics and Availability of COVID-19 Therapeutic Drugs
We investigated geospatial patterns of COVID-19 therapeutic drugs to assess possible sociodemographic-based disparities across US counties.
Sep 22, 2023
Commentary
The Solution to Telemedicine Prescribing of Buprenorphine Seems Clear to Everyone but DEA
For more than a decade, Congress, clinicians, and policymakers have been requesting implementation of a special registration pathway that would allow registered clinicians to prescribe buprenorphine without an in-person visit requirement. It's clear to us that the time to implement the pathway is now.
Sep 5, 2023
Dissertation
Three Essays in Policy Analysis Among Vulnerable Populations
Three essays that explore policy analysis among vulnerable populations.
Aug 21, 2023
Journal Article
Investigating the Complexity of Naloxone Distribution: Which Policies Matter for Pharmacies and Potential Recipients
In this paper, we estimate the effects on naloxone pharmacy distribution of two types of laws: laws authorizing non-patient-specific prescription distribution of naloxone and laws granting pharmacists prescriptive authority for naloxone.
Jul 31, 2023
Journal Article
Impact of Drug Shortages on Consumer Costs
We identify and describe potential costs to patients from drug shortages, measure the impacts of shortages on available indicators of changes in costs to patients, and examine how shortage effects on patient costs vary by drug and patient characteristics.
Jun 28, 2023
Journal Article
Impact of Recreational Cannabis Legalization on Opioid Prescribing and Opioid-Related Hospital Visits in Colorado: An Observational Study
Our mixed findings suggest that further increases in cannabis beyond medical access may not always reduce opioid prescribing or opioid-related hospital visits at a population level.
Jun 27, 2023
News Release
State Policies Requiring Education for Buprenorphine Prescribers Boosts Use of Opioid Use Disorder Treatment
States that want to increase access to buprenorphine, a lifesaving medication used to treat opioid use disorder, should consider efforts to enhance professional education and clinician knowledge.
May 26, 2023
Journal Article
Estimated Annual Spending on Lecanemab and Its Ancillary Costs in the US Medicare Program
To estimate annual Medicare spending on lecanemab, we performed a cost analysis using nationally representative survey data from the 2018 Health and Retirement Study (HRS).
May 17, 2023
Journal Article
A Randomized Trial of Letters to Encourage Prescription Monitoring Program Use and Safe Opioid Prescribing
Researchers conducted a randomized trial to assess whether letters to clinicians increased use of the state prescription monitoring programs (PMP) and decreased risky coprescribing of opioids with benzodiazepines or gabapentinoids.
Apr 20, 2023
Report
Impacts of increasing requirements for research and development (R&D) cost transparency: Literature review
A literature review shows that increasing the transparency of the research and development costs of new medicines is much discussed. But there is no evidence of the impact this would have on medicines' prices or the rate of innovation.
Mar 31, 2023
News Release
U.S. Opioid Crisis Best Viewed as Connected Ecosystem; Changing Policymakers' Approach Can Aid Solutions
The nation's opioid crisis, which kills thousands of Americans annually, is best viewed as an ecosystem where all parts of the vexing problem are interconnected, underscoring the need for holistic solutions that address the broad needs of those with substance use disorders, their families, and the communities where they live.
Mar 16, 2023
Report
America's Opioid Ecosystem
Patterns and consequences of opioid use are changing dramatically. Researchers provide a nuanced assessment of America's opioid ecosystem, highlighting how leveraging system interactions can reduce addiction, overdose, suffering, and other harms.
Mar 16, 2023
Visualization
The Ecosystem Approach to Opioid Policy
RAND researchers created a tool to help federal, state, and local policymakers better understand issues surrounding opioids as an ecosystem—and explore innovative policy ideas.
Mar 16, 2023
Journal Article
Prior Authorization Restrictions on Medications for Opioid Use Disorder: Trends in State Laws from 2005 to 2019
Researchers conducted a review of U.S. regulations and statutes between 2005 and 2019 related to medications for opioid use disorder to identify the frequency and types of prior authorization prohibitions in state laws.
Feb 9, 2023
Blog
State of the Union 2023: Insights from RAND
In his second State of the Union address, President Joe Biden covered a wide range of issues facing the United States at home and abroad, including police violence, gun policy, Russia's war in Ukraine, and U.S. competition with China.
Feb 8, 2023
Journal Article
An Exploratory Analysis of Differential Prescribing of High-Risk Opioids by Insurance Type Among Patients Seen by the Same Clinician
The objective of this paper is to explore how high-risk opioid analgesic prescribing varies by payer type among patients seeing the same prescriber and identify clinician characteristics associated with variable prescribing.
Feb 8, 2023

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RAND Topic:
Pharmaceutical Drugs

Topic Synonyms:
Medicinal Drugs

Research conducted by

RAND Health Care

Researcher Spotlight

Robert J. Romanelli

Research Leader

Rob Romanelli (he/him) is a research leader at the RAND Corporation. Working primarily for RAND Europe, his focus is on health and well-being. Romanelli's work has covered evaluating health care system policies, programs, and interventions designed to improve the quality and safety of care…
Claire E. O'Hanlon

Associate Policy Researcher

Claire E. O'Hanlon (she/her) is an associate policy researcher at RAND and a professor of policy analysis at the Pardee RAND Graduate School. A health services, economics, and policy researcher with a background in engineering, experienced in applied quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods,…

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