Pharma industry reputation settles into ‘new normal’ — Harris Poll

Pharma’s reputation is settling into a consistent “new normal,” with now 45% of consumers reporting a positive perception of the industry, according to The Harris Poll’s latest survey data.

While that’s good news considering the industry’s much lower public regard before the pandemic, are there potential bumps — such as Medicare’s spotlight on drug pricing and negotiations — on the horizon?

Rob Jekielek

Maybe, Harris Poll general manager Rob Jekielek said. The current survey data, run last week, will serve as a solid benchmark for when, or if, there is perception fallout from the Medicare announcement this week of the first 10 drugs it will force drugmakers to negotiate under the guidelines of the Inflation Reduction Act.

“There is a question of what’s going to happen to pharma reputation now that the list of 10 drugs is out, with the IRA turning into a real thing – and pharma companies pushing back on what they feel like is an unfair process,” he said.

For now, pharma industry consumer perception lands at a comfortable 45% — almost the exact midpoint between the low 32% approval rating before the Covid-19 pandemic and the high 62% during the pandemic in 2021 after vaccines began to hit the market.

Since the beginning of 2022 though, consumers’ positive perception rating has held steady in the mid-to-high 40 percentages. It did catch a small spike in March, bouncing up to 49% after three major insulin providers — Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk and Sanofi — each announced they would cap insulin drug prices and out-of-pocket costs.

“So 45 looks to be right around the new normal for the pharma industry,” Jekielek said. “If you look at the historical timeline, that’s net positive. It’s certainly not anywhere near peak, but it’s well ahead of pre-Covid.”

The pharma industry wasn’t alone in its reputation decline since March. Eight out of 10 leading categories saw single-digit reputation drops including financial services (-4%) government (-3%) and manufacturing (-2%). Only technology (+2%) and health insurance (+2%) notched small gains.

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