Prescription Drugs

Dramatic growth in the use of generic drugs has generated substantial savings for American consumers. To examine how the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) can encourage the use of generic drugs, the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) examined barriers to, and opportunities for, expanding the use of generic drugs.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

This Policy Brief provides a snapshot of prescription drug use and spending in 2001, the latest year for which complete community and long-term care facility drug data are available.

This Policy Brief helps fill an important gap in our understanding of medication patterns in long-term care facilities (LTCFs) by comparing use and spending for prescription and over-the-counter drugs during skilled nursing facility (SNF) stays and related non-qualifying long-term care facility episodes.

Contents IGIV Supply and Distribution - Key Findings IGIV Demand - Key Fundings IGIV Access Problems- Key Fundings Immune globulin intravenous (IGIV), also referred to as intravenous immune globulin (IVIG), is a valuable treatment for many seriously ill patients. Although the U.S.

Report authors : George Greenberg, Nancy DeLew Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

This Policy Brief offers an updated look at prescription drug utilization by Medicare beneficiaries residing in long-term care facilities and reports, for the first time, national estimates of prescription drug spending by this population. [23 PDF pages]

This paper examines by state variation in drug prices and drug spending. Variation in prices are found to be minimal but variation in spending (and utilization) are more substantial. Further work will explore the underlying reasons for the spending variation and whether patterns persist when analyzed for areas other than states.