Express Scripts reports record lows in prescription trends

ST. LOUIS One of the country’s largest pharmacy benefit managers said Monday that prescription drug cost trends decreased to record lows last year.

Data from Express Scripts indicated that the trend resulted from greater use of generic drugs and low-cost branded drugs, the PBM said. The overall pharmacy cost trend for clients of the company was 3% for 2008, down from 5.5% the year before.

The company calculated the data by evaluating total prescription costs for traditional and specialty drugs, including patient copays and payments by plan sponsors such as health plans and employers.

“Using generic drugs that are safe and effective can help lower costs while still driving value for patients and employers,” stated Steven Miller, Express Scripts chief medical officer and SVP . “Our results indicate that cost control is achievable through careful management of appropriate use of drugs and delivery channels, without shifting costs to consumers.”

The company said that additional opportunities for savings remain. Consumers wasted an estimated $42 billion in 2008 by not finding appropriate, lower-cost alternatives to expensive branded drugs. The researchers based the estimate on potential savings for the total U.S. population in 13 drug-therapy classes, using a sample size of 3 million people.