BLACKHERBALS.COM
The 10 Most Prescribed Drugs
Daniel J. DeNoon
April 20, 2011
The 10 most prescribed drugs in the U.S. aren't the
drugs on which we spend the most, according to a report from the IMS
Institute for Healthcare Informatics.
The Institute is the public face of IMS, a pharmaceutical market
intelligence firm. Its latest report provides a wealth of data on U.S.
prescription drug use.
Continuing a major trend, IMS finds that 78% of the nearly 4 billion
U.S. prescriptions written in 2010 were for generic drugs (both unbranded
and those still sold under a brand name). In order of number of
prescriptions written in 2010, the 10 most-prescribed drugs in the U.S.
are:
- Hydrocodone (combined with acetaminophen) -- 131.2 million
prescriptions
- Generic Zocor (simvastatin), a cholesterol-lowering statin drug --
94.1 million prescriptions
- Lisinopril (brand names include Prinivil and Zestril), a blood
pressure drug -- 87.4 million prescriptions
- Generic Synthroid (levothyroxine sodium), synthetic thyroid hormone
-- 70.5 million prescriptions
- Generic Norvasc (amlodipine besylate), an angina/blood pressure drug
-- 57.2 million prescriptions
- Generic Prilosec (omeprazole), an antacid drug -- 53.4 million
prescriptions (does not include over-the-counter sales)
- Azithromycin (brand names include Z-Pak and Zithromax), an
antibiotic -- 52.6 million prescriptions
- Amoxicillin (various brand names), an antibiotic -- 52.3 million
prescriptions
- Generic Glucophage (metformin), a diabetes drug -- 48.3 million
prescriptions
- Hydrochlorothiazide (various brand names), a water pill used to
lower blood pressure -- 47.8 million prescriptions.
The 10 Best-Selling Drugs
It shouldn't be a surprise that these generic drugs are not the ones
bringing in the big bucks for pharmaceutical companies. The drugs on which
we spend the most money are those that are still new enough to be
protected against generic competition.
The IMS reports that Americans spent $307 billion on prescription drugs
in 2010. The 10 drugs on which we spent the most were:
- Lipitor, a cholesterol-lowering statin drug -- $7.2 billion
- Nexium, an antacid drug -- $6.3 billion
- Plavix, a blood thinner -- $6.1 billion
- Advair Diskus, an asthma inhaler -- $4.7 billion
- Abilify, an antipsychotic drug -- $4.6 billion
- Seroquel, an antipsychotic drug -- $4.4 billion
- Singulair, an oral asthma drug -- $4.1 billion
- Crestor, a cholesterol-lowering statin drug -- $3.8 billion
- Actos, a diabetes drug -- $3.5 billion
- Epogen, an injectable anemia drug -- $3.3 billion
U.S. Prescription Drug Use: 2010 Factoids
Who's paying for all these drugs? Commercial insurance helped pay for
63% of prescriptions, down from 66% five years ago. Federal government
spending through Medicare Part D covered 22% of prescriptions.
For Americans covered by insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid, the average
co-payment for a prescription was $10.73 -- down a bit from 2009 due to
increased use of generic drugs. The average co-payment for branded drugs
for which generic alternatives were available jumped 6% to $22.73.
Other facts from the 2010 IMS report:
- Doctor visits were down 4.2% since 2009.
- Patients filled more than half of their prescriptions -- 54% -- at
chain drugstores, possibly because of discounts on generic drugs.
- Brands that lost their protection from generic competition led to
$12.6 billion less spending in 2010 than in 2009.
- The price increase for drugs without generic competition led to
$16.6 billion more spending in 2010 than in 2009.
- Drug companies offered $4.5 billion in rebates to assist patients
with the high cost of brand name drugs for which there was no generic
alternative.
SOURCE:
IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics: "The Use of Medicines
in the United States: Review of 2010," April 2011.
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/741526
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