The annual expenditure for pharmacy products paid for by state workers' compensation systems increased 11.9 percent per injured worker last year, according to a pharmaceutical products provider.

Tampa, Fla.-based PMSI announced the findings in its 2008 Annual Drug Trends Report.

In 2006, the expenditure increased 8.7 percent, the company said.

It found that in 2007, the impact of price represented 39 percent of the increase, while utilization contributed 61 percent.

Utilization was defined as the average number of prescriptions taken by an injured worker per year.

PMSI said that greater than 70 percent of all pharmacy expenditures in workers' comp are for pain management.

Within that class of drugs it found that:

o Some 35.2 percent went for narcotic analgesics such as Vicodin, Percocet or Oxycontin.

o Another 11.2 percent were for anticonvulsants, typically Lyrica or Nuerontin.

o Anti-inflammatory medications accounted for 9.2 percent, typically Celebrex, Ibuprofen and Mobic.

o Muscle relaxants such as Flexeril or Skelaxin accounted for 8.5 percent.

o Antidepressants represented 7.5 percent of spending, typically Cymbalta, Zoloft or Effexor.

The report said five new brand medications in 2006 and 2007 contributed 2.5 percent to total pharmacy spend. It named Opana, Fentora, Soma, Ambien and Ultram.

Nine generic launches in 2007 were said to have resulted in a savings of nearly 2 percent.

The age of workers' comp claims, the report said, increased 6 percent between 2006 and 2007, rising from 5.26 years in 2006 to 5.59 years in 2007. According to PMSI, as claims age, there is greater use of medications, from both an increase in the type of medications taken and the longer duration of therapy.

PMSI said its study found large disparity in average prescription prices and utilization of prescriptions from state to state. Based on average cost per prescription, it said 12 states were in the highest bracket averaging $1,300.

The 12 highest states were Alabama, California, Delaware, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota and Ohio. The District of Colombia was also in that tier

The company said the report represents a review of injured workers' pharmacy claims, representing in excess of 12 million transactions for nearly 1.5 million injured workers, totaling close to $1.3 billion dollars.

Nick Page, PMSI chief clinical officer, said the report goal "is to provide quality benchmark information to empower insurers, employers, third-party administrators and government entities to make more informed decisions regarding their workers' compensation pharmacy program. The ultimate benefit is improved quality of care for injured workers while containing costs and controlling utilization for payers."

The 2008 Annual Drug Trends Report can be viewed online at www.pmsionline.com.

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Comp Pharmacy Spend Grew Nearly 12% Last Year

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