Jul 17 2007
A Pill a Day….
Drugs.com published a list of the Top 200 prescription Drugs for 2006 by US Sales. What would you say this reveals about health (or health care) in the United States?
Here are the top 10:
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Top 10 Drugs for 2006 by US Sales. |
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| Rank | Product | U.S. Sales (U.S.$ Billions) |
Usage |
| 1 | Lipitor | $6.58 | cholesterol-lowering medication that blocks the production of cholesterol (a type of fat) in the body. |
| 2 | Nexium | $4.06 | decreases the amount of acid produced in the stomach |
| 3 | Prevacid | $3.31 | decreases the amount of acid produced in the stomach |
| 4 | Advair Diskus | $3.11 | used to prevent asthma attacks |
| 5 | Singulair | $2.46 | used to prevent asthma attacks in adults and children as young as 12 months old. It is also used to relieve runny nose and sneezing caused by allergies in adults and children as young as 6 months old. |
| 6 | Effexor XR | $2.25 | an antidepressant used to treat major depressive disorder, anxiety, and panic disorder. |
| 7 | Plavix | $2.23 | used to prevent blood clots after a recent heart attack or stroke, and in people with certain disorders of the heart or blood vessels |
| 8 | Zocor | $2.17 | cholesterol-lowering medication that blocks the production of cholesterol (a type of fat) in the body. |
| 9 | Norvasc | $2.15 | used to treat hypertension (high blood pressure) and to treat angina (chest pain). |
| 10 | Lexapro | $2.10 | used to treat anxiety and major depressive disorder. |
4 responses so far
I’m picturing a big singalong: “Oh, we’re fat, out of breath and depressed with weak hearts…we’re fat, out of breath and depressed with weak hearts…EVERYBODY!”
There are a few ways to look at this sing-along:
1. The social view–Certain drugs are over-prescribed. They sell much because they’re viewed as a miracle drug, when diet, exercise and stress relief could solve much of the acid indigestion and high cholesterol problem, for example.
2. The cynical view–Americans suffer from high-rates of cardio-vascular problems, allergies, asthma and depression. We are a fat and depressed people.
3. The economist’s view–It’s a big business and it benefits pill-pushers. Just for the top 10 it’s a 27.31 Billion dollar sing-along. No wonder then that health insurance rates are going up. If we assume insurance covered 80% of the cost of drugs, just the top 10 meant an insurance cost of $21.8 billion.
I am afraid I take a mix between the cynical/econimist view. It’s a big business that makes its money off of a stressed out, depressed, and overweight population.
Hey Johnny, I love that! I can also be seen as ‘the stressed, depressed and over-weight people are providing a sizable opportunity to make money off of them’ ;P.