Specialty Drug Spending Continues to Rise, Driven by Higher Utilization

Per-member per-year (PMPY) specialty drug spending rose 13.6% from 2018 to 2019, according to Pharmaceutical Strategies Group’s annual report, which analyzed 45 million pharmacy claims and 54 million medical claims. Contributing to the growth was a 10.3% increase in utilization and a 3.3% rise in costs per claim. Specialty drug spending under the pharmacy benefit saw the largest increase, driven by 19.6% higher utilization of such therapies. In terms of overall cost, inflammatory disorders ranked No. 1 among all drug categories, followed by oncology and multiple sclerosis.

© 2023 MMIT
Jinghong Chen

Jinghong Chen Reporter

Jinghong produces infographics and data stories on health insurance and specialty pharmacy for AIS Health. She graduated from Missouri School of Journalism with a focus on data journalism and international reporting. Before joining AIS in 2018, she worked at WBEZ, Al Jazeera English and The New York Times Chinese.

Related Posts

pharmacists
September 14

‘Delinking’ PBM Pay From Drug Prices Comes With High Cost, Economist Argues

READ MORE
capitol-dome
September 14

House Committees Proffer Modest PBM Reform Bill

READ MORE
blurry-judge
September 14

Legal Challenges to Drug Price Negotiations Could Have Broad Implications

READ MORE

GAIN THERAPEUTIC AREA-SPECIFIC INTEL TO DRIVE ACCESS FOR YOUR BRAND

Sign up for publications to get unmatched business intelligence delivered to your inbox.

subscribe today