May 2006 »

Generic drug prescriptions up

24 May, 2006

Express Scripts Inc. reported Wednesday that since 2001, it has seen a five-fold increase in the number of pharmacy benefit plan members covered by programs promoting the use of generic drugs before using brand-name drugs.

Express Scripts said in a release that 14 million consumers in pharmacy benefit plans it manages are now covered by programs that prefer the use of generics before name brands, up from 2.8 million in 2001.

Since 2001, generic drug use at Express Scripts has grown from 42.1 percent of all prescriptions to a record 56.3 percent during the first quarter of 2006, the release said. According to company research, every percentage point increase in the use of generics reduces overall drug spending by nearly a percentage point -- resulting in more than $10 billion in savings for Express Scripts clients and members since 2001.

Plan sponsors have also increased the number of generic promotion programs used to the current average of 8.4 per plan sponsor. In such programs, the use of therapeutically-equivalent cheap generic drugs is promoted or required before brand-name drugs are prescribed.

Express Scripts offers 25 generic promotion programs to its plan sponsor clients, covering most therapeutic categories, the company said in the release.

Between 2002 and 2005, 87 drugs went generic, representing $31.2 billion in sales. In 2006, generic alternatives will become available for at least 15 commonly used prescription drugs, representing $11 billion in sales nationally, according to the release.
St. Louis-based Express Scripts Inc. (Nasdaq: ESRX) is one of the largest pharmacy benefit managers in the country.

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