Prescription Drug Spending Increases 16% Over Five Years, Driven by Rising Drug Prices
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Oct 27, 2022
Total inflation-adjusted spending on prescription drugs grew from $520 billion in 2016 to $603 billion in 2021, before accounting for rebates, according to a report published by HHS’s Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE). Retail drug expenditures represented about 70% of prescription drug spending in 2021. For retail prescription drugs, there was a 13% increase in drug spending over the five years studied, yet only a 5.7% increase in the number of prescriptions.
Meanwhile, more and more Americans received their drugs from mail order pharmacies, clinics and home health care organizations between 2016 and 2021. Read more
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