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Greater access to nonprescription drugs can reduce health care costs for manufacturers and improve quality of life for their employees, the NAM told the Food and Drug Administration this week.

What’s going on: The FDA put out a request for information on how to increase access to nonprescription drugs. The NAM shared manufacturers’ longstanding commitment to providing health benefits to their workers as both an effective tool to attract and retain employees and to maintain a healthy and productive workforce. It also explained how rising health care costs have been a great challenge for the industry.

• Expanding access to over-the-counter medications—which are typically affordably priced, widely available and can be purchased and taken as soon as they are needed—can save time and money for employers and employees alike.

The benefits:  “Prescription drugs require doctor’s visits, which involve not just the time spent at the appointment itself, but also the time needed to schedule an appointment or locate an in-network provider if a patient does not already have one, as well as the financial cost of a copay or coinsurance,” the NAM said, explaining why people need access to OTC drugs, in addition to prescriptions.

• “Manufacturing workers taking time off from work to see a doctor reduces workplace productivity at a time when the industry is already facing a manufacturing worker shortage. OTC drugs can help workers to recover more quickly and return to work sooner.”

What else should be done: Manufacturers commend the administration for its efforts to expand access to OTC medications. The NAM recommended several steps the FDA can take to increase access, including:

• Rebalance regulations and reduce unnecessary burdens in the nonprescription drug regulatory process;
• Broaden the risk/benefit assessment for nonprescription drugs to include the consideration of benefits beyond those to the individual patient, such as to population health, the health care system overall and the economy;
• Broaden the FDA consideration of which drugs can be switched from prescription to nonprescription;
• Include specialized care professionals and patient advocates on advisory councils; and
• Maintain the three-year exclusivity incentive for some prescription to OTC drug switches that require significant financial investment.

The last word: “Increased access to nonprescription drugs is crucial for manufacturers as providers of employer-sponsored insurance, and for manufacturers of consumer health care products, who strive every day to improve the health and lives of Americans,” said NAM Vice President of Domestic Policy Jake Kuhns and NAM Director of Health Care Policy Jess Wysocky.