The trend: Amid growing awareness of cash-pay medication pricing and the February launch of TrumpRx, 59% of healthcare providers report that their patients are asking more questions about prescription drug prices than before, according to a June Tebra survey of about 800 US consumers and 200 healthcare providers.

According to providers:

• 76% say patients ask them for a cheaper medication than what’s being prescribed.
• 48% say patients bring up TrumpRx or cash-pay pricing during appointments.
• 35% say patients ask them to prescribe specific medications they believe they can get at a lower cash-pay price.

For context, TrumpRx is the government’s online prescription drug marketplace, which directs consumers to discounted medications through partner merchants. Relatedly, several drugmakers have recently cut cash-pay prices on select medicines in response to government pressure and to reach consumers more directly by bypassing middlemen that can restrict access, such as pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and insurers.

Why it matters: Doctors are generally not best equipped to answer detailed questions about exact drug prices or insurance coverage. While they know which medications work best for a condition, they rarely know the exact out-of-pocket costs as prices change constantly based on individual insurance plans, pharmacies, and discount programs.

As awareness of TrumpRx and cash-pay options grows, providers say they’re spending about five minutes per affected patient explaining TrumpRx pricing, according to Tebra. For context, that means doctors are spending one-third of a typical patient visit fielding Rx questions they likely don’t have the best answer for.

Providers also say they’re fielding specific questions about drug prices and affordability from their patients, including:

• Help finding the lowest medication price (36%)
• Explaining insurance versus cash-pay pricing (16%)
• Knowing whether the lowest-cost medication option is the most clinically appropriate (12%).

Compounding the problem, patients remain confused about how TrumpRx works, even as awareness grows. Nearly half (46%) of providers have corrected patients who mistakenly believed TrumpRx offered their lowest-cost option, while 30% of patients who browsed the platform remain unsure how it works, per Tebra.

Implications for drugmakers and healthcare providers: Consumers have historically navigated drug pricing at the pharmacy counter or through insurers/PBMs. But their growing awareness of cash-pay options has pulled that conversation into the exam room, putting more pressure on doctors to explain drug pricing and access. Doctors don't need to become drug-pricing experts, but they will likely need more knowledge to correct misconceptions and tell patients where to go next.

TrumpRx already has an FAQ for prescribers and pharmacies, but participating drugmakers and those offering discounted cash-pay medicines could do more to distribute provider-focused guidance through medical associations, health systems, and specialty societies. Outreach should focus on clinicians prescribing drugs with prominent cash-pay programs, such as obesity medications, fertility drugs, and other expensive branded therapies. This way, providers don’t have to answer questions like “Where is this medication cheapest?”, but are still equipped with a short explanation and resources that direct patients to pharmacists, insurers, or relevant cash-pay programs for specific pricing and access information.

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