MS Disease-Modifying Therapies Are Becoming Even More Expensive

Generic medications are increasingly available for multiple sclerosis (MS) disease-modifying therapies (DMTs). Generic drug availability is thought to decrease costs, via both lower costs for generics and reductions in branded version costs. Investigators evaluated U.S. Medicaid drug utilization data from 2011 to 2017 to assess costs and utilization of MS DMTs before and after introduction of generic glatiramer acetate 20 mg (GA) in 2015 and generic GA 40 mg in 2017.

From 2011 to 2017, rebate-adjusted gross spending on MS DMTs doubled, from $278 million to $600 million per year. Spending per enrollee increased from $2 to $4 over this time. In 2017, spending per enrollee by drug class included 45% for oral DMTs, 23% for GA, 21% for interferon…