April 8, 2022 – According to a study released by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, the country’s total drug spending increased by 7.7 percent in 2021, growing to $576.9 billion. Hospitals accounted for $39.6 billion, an 8.4 percent growth over 2020.
Gilead’s COVID-19 therapeutic remdesivir made up nearly 10 percent of what hospitals spent on drugs in 2021. Hospitals’ remdesivir spending outpaced the next three drugs combined, according to the study.
Aducanumab, approved in 2021 for Alzheimer’s disease was expected to be a significant expense for clinics and hospitals, due to the high cost and the large population of patients. But the final spending on the drug for 2021 was less than $2 million, with the report attributing the low usage to “concerns about data supporting its use, high cost, lack of clarity about reimbursement, and complex monitoring requirements.”
“The drug spending whiplash that clinics and hospitals experienced in the first year of the pandemic did not end with 2021,” said the report’s lead author, Eric Tichy, Pharm.D., M.B.A., division chair, supply chain management at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota. “Uncertainty remains around how long the federal government will continue to pay for COVID treatments, and around inflation, which is moving through most economic sectors.”