Rising Neurology Drug Costs

Prescription drug prices are an issue on many American’s minds.  On average, Americans spend $1,432 a year, and approximately one in three cannot take medications as prescribed due to cost.

In research published in Neurology, Eva L. Feldman, MD, PhD Professor of Neurology Brian Callaghan, M.D., M.S., worked with a team to examine medication cost trends for five common neurologic conditions.  To do so, they analyzed the annual out-of-pocket and total medication costs for over 500,000 individuals with epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, peripheral neuropathy, and dementia/Alzheimer’s disease from 2012 to 2021. They found the following:

• Out-of-pocket costs for multiple sclerosis medications rose annually by an average of 217%.
• Brand-name epilepsy medications had much higher out-of-pocket costs than generics.
• Introducing generic versions of various drugs significantly decreased patient out-of-pocket costs over time. 

“These results underscore the cost-saving benefits of choosing generic medications for individuals with neurologic conditions,” explains Dr. Callaghan.  “They also emphasize the need for policy solutions like out-of-pocket cost caps to help make life-saving medications affordable to all who need them.”

Additional authors: Chun Chieh Lin, Ph.D., of University of Michigan,  Amanda Gusovsky, Ph.D., M.P.H. (first author), Kevin Kerber, M.D., and James Burke, M.D., of The Ohio State University, and Evan Reynolds, Ph.D., of Michigan State University.

Paper cited: Gusovsky AV, Lin CC, Kerber K, Reynolds EL, Callaghan BC, Burke JF. Costs Are Still on the Rise for Commonly Prescribed Branded Neurologic Medications. Neurology. 2024 Nov 26;103(10):e210029. doi: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000210029. Epub 2024 Oct 30. PMID: 39475685.