The economy is causing patients to stretch out, or cut, their prescription medications. This has significant potential to further raise health care costs down the road:

If enough people try to save money by forgoing drugs, controllable conditions could escalate into major medical problems. That could eventually raise the nation’s total health care bill and lower the nation’s standard of living.

Many of the life-saving cardiac and diabetes medications are available generically, and many pharmacies have these drugs at a $4 per month price point.

There’s little reason to stay on brand name medications in the majority of cases, so patients would be well advised to undergo a medication review with their physician to maximize generic drug use.