A good alternative to PDR for the layman wanting to check on pharmaceuticals. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Thanks to remarkable advances in modern health care attributable to science, engineering, and medicine, it is now possible to cure or manage illnesses that were long deemed untreatable. At the same time, however, the United States is facing the vexing challenge of a seemingly uncontrolled rise in the cost of health care. Total medical expenditures are rapidly approaching 20 percent of the gross domestic product and are crowding out other priorities of national importance. The use of increasingly expensive prescription drugs is a significant part of this problem, making the cost of biopharmaceuticals a serious national concern with broad political implications. Especially with the highly visible and very large price increases for prescription drugs that have occurred in recent years, finding a way to make prescription medicinesâ€"and health care at largeâ€"more affordable for everyone has become a socioeconomic imperative. Affordability is a complex function of factors, including not just the prices of the drugs themselves, but also the details of an individual's insurance coverage and the number of medical conditions that an individual or family confronts. Therefore, any solution to the affordability issue will require considering all of these factors together. The current high and increasing costs of prescription drugsâ€"coupled with the broader trends in overall health care costsâ€"is unsustainable to society as a whole. Making Medicines Affordable examines patient access to affordable and effective therapies, with emphasis on drug pricing, inflation in the cost of drugs, and insurance design. This report explores structural and policy factors influencing drug pricing, drug access programs, the emerging role of comparative effectiveness assessments in payment policies, changing finances of medical practice with regard to drug costs and reimbursement, and measures to prevent drug shortages and foster continued innovation in drug development. It makes recommendations for policy actions that could address drug price trends, improve patient access to affordable and effective treatments, and encourage innovations that address significant needs in health care.

Few people realize that prescription drugs have become a leading cause of death, disease, and disability. Adverse reactions to widely used drugs, such as psychotropics and birth control pills, as well as biologicals, result in FDA warnings against adverse reactions. The Risks of Prescription Drugs describes how most drugs approved by the FDA are under-tested for adverse drug reactions, yet offer few new benefits. Drugs cause more than 2.2 million hospitalizations and 110,000 hospital-based deaths a year. Serious drug reactions at home or in nursing homes would significantly raise the total. Women, older people, and people with disabilities are least used in clinical trials and most affected. Health policy experts Donald Light, Howard Brody, Peter Conrad, Allan Horwitz, and Cheryl Stults describe how current regulations reward drug companies to expand clinical risks and create new diseases so millions of patients are exposed to unnecessary risks, especially women and the elderly. They reward developing marginally better drugs rather than discovering breakthrough, life-saving drugs. The Risks of Prescription Drugs tackles critical questions about the pharmaceutical industry and the privatization of risk. To what extent does the FDA protect the public from serious side effects and disasters? What is the effect of giving the private sector and markets a greater role and reducing public oversight? This volume considers whether current rules and incentives put patients' health at greater risk, the effect of the expansion of disease categories, the industry's justification of high U.S. prices, and the underlying shifts in the burden of risk borne by individuals in the world of pharmaceuticals. Chapters cover risks of statins for high cholesterol, SSRI drugs for depression and anxiety, and hormone replacement therapy for menopause. A final chapter outlines six changes to make drugs safer and more effective. Suitable for courses on health and aging, gender, disability, and minority studies, this book identifies the Risk Proliferation Syndrome that maximizes the number of people exposed to these risks. Additional Columbia / SSRC books on the privatization of risk and its implications for Americans: Bailouts: Public Money, Private ProfitEdited by Robert E. Wright Disaster and the Politics of InterventionEdited by Andrew Lakoff Health at Risk: America's Ailing Health System-and How to Heal ItEdited by Jacob S. Hacker Laid Off, Laid Low: Political and Economic Consequences of Employment InsecurityEdited by Katherine S. Newman Pensions, Social Security, and the Privatization of RiskEdited by Mitchell A. Orenstein

Understanding risk -- Putting risk in perspective -- Risk charts : a way to get perspective -- Judging the benefit of a health intervention -- Not all benefits are equal : understand the outcome -- Consider the downsides -- Do the benefits outweight the downsides? -- Beware of exaggerated importance -- Beware of exaggerated certainty -- Who's behind the numbers?

Health Sciences & Professions

A veteran board-certified pharmacist cites the high number of annual deaths associated with prescription drug side effects, calling for changes in prescription practices that account for the needs of aging bodies.

AARP Digital Editions offer you practical tips, proven solutions, and expert guidance. James Balch and Mark Stengler, coauthors of the hugely successful Prescription for Natural Cures, and Robin Young Balch have teamed up to create the most comprehensive and up-to-date book available on natural alternatives to prescription medications. The book provides natural, safe, and effective ways to treat a wide range of common ailments, including ADHD, allergies, diabetes, depression, erectile dysfunction, eczema, heart disease, headaches, and PMS. You'll read in-depth information, not found in any other popular book, about the pros and cons of prescription and over-the-counter drugs compared with natural treatment alternatives ranging from diet and lifestyle changes to supplements and herbal medicines. "This book is essential reading for anyone who wants to take charge of his or her health. Read it to live long and well." —Hyla Cass, M.D., author of Supplement Your Prescription: What Your Doctor Doesn't Know about Nutrition "An outstanding resource for comparing common pharmaceutical and holistic treatments." —Ronald M. Lawrence, M.D., coauthor of Preventing Arthritis and The Miracle of MSM "A must-read for every person who wants to achieve better health and avoid the dangers of synthetic medications. The authors do an exceptional job by telling you everything you need to know about getting well and how to use supplements correctly and safely." —Suzy Cohen, R.Ph., author of The 24-Hour Pharmacist

Based on more than eight years of research, Dr. Cohen offers vital advice on how to reduce dosages to prevent reactions, tells which commonly used drugs often cause side effects, provides guidelines on choosing a particular drug, and lists effective dosage recommendations for over 150 prescription and nonprescription medications.