Medicare enrollees, who often get by on a fixed income, are still responsible for part of the cost of their prescription drugs. That can add up to several thousand dollars each year.
And many of the most commonly used drugs under Medicare see exorbitant price increases over time.
A recent AARP analysis identified 25 brand-name drugs with the highest Medicare spending, along with how much they’ve increased in price since coming to market. It used data from the federal government’s Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services from 2022, the most recent year available at the time of the analysis.
The data showed these medications have increased by an average of 98% — nearly doubling — since first hitting the market, with some increasing over 250%.
Following are the top Medicare drugs that have skyrocketed in price since their debuts.
10. Trulicity
The year this drug first entered the market: 2014
Lifetime list-price hike for this drug as of 2022: 100%
Total Medicare spending on this drug in 2022: $6,225,291,667.60
Trulicity is a drug used to treat Type 2 diabetes made by Eli Lilly. It’s also being prescribed for folks without diabetes to assist with weight loss. However, that’s an off-label use, as the FDA hasn’t approved it expressly for weight loss.
9. Pomalyst
The year this drug first entered the market: 2013
Lifetime list-price hike for this drug as of 2022: 120%
Total Medicare spending on this drug in 2022: $1,743,892,720.40
This alternative to Revlimid from Bristol Myers Squibb is a once-a-day pill made for patients with relapsed multiple myeloma, a type of cancer.
While Pomalyst currently costs the Medicare program more than $1.7 billion per year, that might change soon. It was among the drugs selected for Medicare’s second round of price negotiations with drug manufacturers, as we detailed in “15 New Drugs Selected for Medicare Price Negotiations.”
8. Victoza
The year this drug first entered the market: 2010
Lifetime list-price hike for this drug as of 2022: 126%
Total Medicare spending on this drug in 2022: $319,205,509.29 (Victoza two-pack) and $1,238,594,872.40 (Victoza three-pack)
Victoza is an injection to treat Type 2 diabetes that does not contain insulin. It lowers blood sugar and A1C, and it can reduce the risk of major cardiovascular events like heart attack, stroke or death.
It’s also being prescribed for weight loss assistance to those without diabetes, although that isn’t an FDA-approved use.
7. Jakafi
The year this drug first entered the market: 2011
Lifetime list-price hike for this drug as of 2022: 150%
Total Medicare spending on this drug in 2022: $1,756,404,369.10
Jakafi treats those over the age of 12 who have acute graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) and who have taken corticosteroids or two other types of treatments that weren’t effective enough.
GvHD is when transplanted stem cells are viewed as threats by the receiver’s (host’s) body, prompting the immune system to target the donated stem cells.
6. Linzess
The year this drug first entered the market: 2012
Lifetime list-price hike for this drug as of 2022: 154%
Total Medicare spending on this drug in 2022: $1,581,669,987.30
Linzess targets symptoms related to irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C) and chronic idiopathic constipation (CIC). It primarily targets pain-sensing nerves and accelerates bowel movements.
Like Pomalyst, Linzess is among the medications in “15 New Drugs Selected for Medicare Price Negotiations.”
5. Tradjenta
The year this drug first entered the market: 2011
Lifetime list-price hike for this drug as of 2022: 159%
Total Medicare spending on this drug in 2022: $1,326,573,078.60
Tradjenta is a once-a-day pill that treats adults with Type 2 diabetes. It pushes the pancreas to produce more insulin and the liver to produce less sugar. It’s manufactured by the pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim.
Like Pomalyst and Linzess, Tradjenta is also among “15 New Drugs Selected for Medicare Price Negotiations.”
4. Humalog
The year this drug first entered the market: 2017
Lifetime list-price hike for this drug as of 2022: 219%
Total Medicare spending on this drug in 2022: $440,789,066.72
Humalog is a mealtime insulin injection that treats people with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes.
3. Creon
The year this drug first entered the market: 2009
Lifetime list-price hike for this drug as of 2022: 233%
Total Medicare spending on this drug in 2022: $1,310,801,527.60
Creon treats patients with exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI), which is when the pancreas doesn’t release enough digestive enzymes and therefore makes those with the condition unable to digest food normally. It works by replenishing missing enzymes.
2. Xifaxan
The year this drug first entered the market: 2004
Lifetime list-price hike for this drug as of 2022: 253%
Total Medicare spending on this drug in 2022: $969,541,694.20
Xifaxan is for adults at risk of overt hepatic encephalopathy (HE) and for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea (IBS-D).
Xifaxan also is among “15 New Drugs Selected for Medicare Price Negotiations.”
1. Janumet
The year this drug first entered the market: 2007
Lifetime list-price hike for this drug as of 2022: 293%
Total Medicare spending on this drug in 2022: $815,605,370.41
Janumet is a once-daily pill for adults with Type 2 diabetes. It combines two prescription medications into one pill: metformin and sitagliptin.
Janumet as well as Janumet XR, an extended-release version of the drug, are among the medications in “15 New Drugs Selected for Medicare Price Negotiations.”
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