United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office Health, Education, and Human Services Division author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 1995-04-28 monographic deposited born digital GA 1.13:HEHS-95-90 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-95-90 P0b002ee180380331 f:he95090 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-24 GAOREPORTS-HEHS-95-90 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-HEHS-95-90 HEHS-95-90 Pharmaceutical industry Price adjustments Controlled substances Price indexes Drugs Price regulation Inflation Cost analysis Pharmacological research Health care cost control Consumer Price Index Producer Price Index Letter Report HEHS During the 1980s and 1990s, the prices of prescription drugs rose on average at triple the rate of inflation, according to U.S. government statistics. As Congress debated whether to curb drug price increases, research questioning the accuracy of the price statistics--especially the producer price index for prescription drugs published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics--was in its early stages. Today, a body of research urges the reexamination of the accuracy of the producer price index for prescription drugs. This report (1) reviews the accuracy of the producer price index for prescription drugs as a measure of drug price inflation, (2) describes whether the index could be changed to more accurately measure changes in the cost of buying drugs, and (3) provides guidance on appropriate uses and common misuses of price indexes. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-95-90/html/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-95-90.htm GAO/HEHS-95-90 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-95-90 Letter Report GAO/HEHS-95-90; Prescription Drug Prices: Official Index Overstates Producer Price Inflation; Pharmaceutical industry Price adjustments Controlled substances Price indexes Drugs Price regulation Inflation Cost analysis Pharmacological research Health care cost control Consumer Price Index Producer Price Index