Tragic: one in three recipes of renewed drugs due to cost

About 30% of drug prescriptions in USA They are left unexplained by patients because of their increased participation leading to private drug payments to averaging around $ 2,000 a year, and in many cases exceed $ 3,500.

Although the use of generics is broad on the other side of the Atlantic, and in these cases patients prefer a 10 -year or 20 -year generic over -generation of younger generation. Correspondingly, bio-like are limited to 25% of the corresponding biological drugs.

As for the new original drugs, only half of the prescriptions are finally performed, while not even 30% of patients manage to keep their medication for one year.

And all this, at a time when we expect the approval of 50-55 new drugs each year for the treatment of cancer, rare diseases, diabetes, obesity and neurological diseases.

These figures are listed by a report by the IQVIA study company on the use of drugs in the US for the next five years.

Patients who needed a new treatment eventually abandoned 96 million recipes in pharmacies in 2024 due to increased costs

Patients access to medicines

According to the report, 27% of new prescriptions remain renewed, mainly due to non -coverage of patients’ insurance, but also more than one -third of the prescriptions remain unpaid in Medicaid due to greater patient participation.

Patients who needed a new treatment eventually abandoned 96 million prescriptions in pharmacies in 2024 due to increased costs, as they had no insurance or their safety did not cover them.

When it comes to new drugs, here more than half of the recipes remain relentless, with only 29% of patients being treated for one year.

While generics are generally preferred by insurance, more than 25% of new generics are rejected by payers two years after their admission, limiting generics and saving resources for patients and the health system.

But the historical motif of the rapid penetration of generics into the therapeutic regimens and the decrease in prices seems to continue, as shown by the smallest use of the younger generics who have entered the market over the last five years, against those that have been circulating for 10-20 years.

Similarly, biomes are used to a limited extent, as they only account for only 24% of the volume of competitive molecules.

Private payments

The total cost of private expenditure from patients’ pocket for medication has reached 98 billion. DOL in 2024, increasing 6 billion. DOL, with much of this increase involving special drugs and not drugs moving through a pharmacy.

The average cost per prescription remained stable in 2024, although the average cost for original drugs continued to increase, mainly due to the increased use of GLP-1 militants in diabetes and obesity.

Over 90% of prescriptions cost patients less than $ 20, while recipes that patients supply their medicines without participation increased to 46% in 2024, from 32% in 2019.

However, 79 million recipes cost patients over $ 125 in 2024, with an average annual increase of 10% in the last five years and 40% of them are Medicare patients.

Retail, mail and long -term recipes exceeded 7 billion in 2024, a 2.5% increase compared to 2023.

Medicare insured in 2024 paid themselves on average more than $ 2,000 to meet their annual drug needs, as a limit to the legislation to reduce inflation, reducing insured persons who paid more than $ 3,500 a year for the same purpose.

GLP-1 agonists may have increased the average prescription costs for diabetes over the last two years, but the ceiling to $ 35 has reduced the average insulin cost, saving almost $ 681 million in insulins in 2024, compared to the maximum prices paid at 2020. Million DOL.

New drugs

About 50-55 new drugs are expected to be circulated every year until 2029 in the US, mainly oncology, orphans of rare diseases, as well as traditional treatments for diabetes, obesity and neurological diseases.

In this given, pharmaceutical expenditure is expected to increase by 5-8% on the basis of official retail prices, while the pharmaceutical industry is expected to increase its sales by 3-6% after deducting deductions and mandatory refunds. Overall, pharmaceutical expenditure is estimated to exceed 600 billion. dol.

In absolute numbers, the increase is expected to reach 116 billion. DOL compared to 2024, after compensating spending on new treatments and increasing consumption, from savings resulting from prices cuts due to the expiry of patents.

The new medicines are expected to cost 125 billion. DOL next five years, compared to 141 billion. DOL between 2020-2024, as prices are expected to be reduced by 1-4%. Savings from loss of exclusivity (expiration of patents) are expected to reach 90.9 billion. DOL in five years, including these savings and small molecules (chemicals) that will face the competition of the generics.

In 2024, the volume of prescription drugs increased by 1.7%, reaching 215 billion. Days of treatment. The increase in community drugs slowed in 2024, while the increase in non -retail drugs continued to accelerate, especially in clinics and clinics. Retail, mail and long -term recipes amounted to more than $ 7 billion in 2024, up 2.5% compared to 2023, although the growth rate continued to slow down.

New recipes for chronic and acute diseases increased in 2024 above 2019 levels, although the largest increase was limited to acute incident recipes, with seasonal respiratory diseases holding the lead.

Consumption

The increase in people who resorted to private insurance has led to a reduction in people covered by Medicaid. In contrast, recipes for Medicare registered have increased the largest increase in the last five years, reaching 25%, almost three times the increase in the number of registered, as more elderly use more medicines, with averaging 36 recipes per recorded in Medicare 2024.

Most therapeutic sectors had a slight increase in treatment days in 2024, with a few exceptions, for example in obesity where more than 50% increased, taking into account GLP-1 agonists for both diabetes and obesity, as well as in immunology where the increase reached 11%.

The use of antibiotics has been reduced since 2019, although the use of its critical drugs, which are intended as a lasting choice, has increased by 42%, underlining the need for continuing management of microbial strength.

The use of targeted cancer treatments has increased by 14% since 2019 and oral drugs are about half of targeted treatment medicines.

The use of anti-influenza vaccines is lower than 2016-2017, while vaccinations for other respiratory viruses have been reduced, as well as regular adult and children vaccinations.

Source: In