The increase in drug spend is driven both by disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic as well as other enduring pharmaceutical trends, such as inflation rates for specialty drugs.
The 3.29 percent figure includes inpatient and non-acute environments, Vizient said.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has had an extraordinary impact on hospitals and health systems. As a result, any increase in pricing, even a modest one, makes the challenge of economic recovery even more difficult,” said Dan Kistner, PharmD, Vizient’s group senior vice president of pharmacy solutions.
Other key takeaways from the report:
- Pediatric pharmaceutical costs are rising as a result of the targeting of rare diseases that require specialty or orphan drugs.
- Continued introduction of generics and an expanding catalog of biosimilars have served to blunt some of the impact of price increases on hospital budgets.
- The top 10 drugs related to COVID-19 saw a combined spend increase of $200 million in March and April. Hydroxychloroquine saw a 1,132 percent increase in spend in those months.
- Specialty drugs continue to drive price increases. Vizient projects a 4.47 percent inflation rate for specialty drugs next year, as well as an ongoing surge in demand for specialty drugs during the pandemic.
- Home infusion therapies are expected to increase during the pandemic.
- Hospital spending on vaccines decreased substantially in March and April. Spending on meningococcal group B vaccines decreased 49 percent, and spending on the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine declined 56 percent.
Find the full report here.
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