We just got a better picture of how much money government agencies are spending on prescription drugs.
On Monday, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which covers roughly 100 million Americans, reported on the drugs it spent the most money on in 2015, as well as how many people are using them. The intent of the report is to “to provide a better sense of the frequency and pervasiveness of these increases,” the agency noted.
The biggest price increases, not accounting for rebates, between 2014 and 2015 were:
Glumetza, a diabetes drug made by Valeant Pharmaceuticals: 381.40%
Hydroxychloroquine Sulfate, a generic drug that’s used to treat arthritis and malaria: 371.80%
Pennsaid, a topical drug used to treat osteoarthritis pain in the knee: 296.40%
Econazole Nitrate, a generic antifungal cream: 275.70%
Mitomycin, a generic chemotherapy drug: 163.10%
