Drug Spending Growth Surges Again in 2015

Total spending on medicines in the U.S. reached $310 billion in 2015 on an estimated net price basis, up 8.5 percent from the previous year, according to a new report issued today by the IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics.

Invoice spending is based on IMS Health reported values from wholesaler transactions measured at trade/invoice prices and exclude off-invoice discounts and rebates that reduce net revenue received by manufacturers. Net spending reflects company recognized revenue after off-invoice discounts, rebates and price concessions are applied.

According to IMS, the increase was driven primarily by a wave of "innovative" new medicines. Let's take a closer look at the data.

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