1 in 4 Medicare Patients Uses Blood Pressure Meds Incorrectly

Nearly 5 million Medicare prescription drug enrollees aren’t taking their blood pressure medication as directed, increasing their risk of heart attack and stroke, a new U.S. study found.

An analysis of 18.5 million Medicare Part D enrollees in 2014 found that 26 percent either skipped doses of their blood pressure medication or stopped taking the drugs entirely, according to the study from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“That’s particularly troubling, because other research indicates that up to 25 percent of new prescriptions for blood pressure medicine are never even filled in the first place,” CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden said. “Of those prescribed those regimens, maybe a quarter don’t even start them, and now we’re finding that another quarter don’t continue them.”

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