Table 2.
Relative impact of UCS on sales of medicines by class (1 and 5 years postpolicy)*
| Therapeutic class | One-year impact (in standard units) |
Five-year impact (in standard units) |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Predicted | Observed | Relative change (95% CI) | Predicted | Observed | Relative change (95% CI) | |
| Antidiabetics | 2602.91 | 2769.79 | 6.4% (−6.9 to 19.7) | 3669.13 | 5090.62 | 38.7% (13.5 to 64.0)* |
| Insulins | 3.30 | 4.45 | 34.8% (15.1 to 54.5)* | 4.58 | 12.56 | 174.4% (113.9 to 235.0)* |
| Cardiac therapy agents | 699.28 | 607.27 | −13.2% (−26.9 to 0.6) | 908.12 | 825.49 | −9.1% (−31.9 to 13.1) |
| Lipid regulating agents | 522.34 | 504.58 | −3.4% (−19.9 to 13.1) | 781.97 | 1629.11 | 108.3% (59.8 to 156.9)* |
| Antihypertensives | 3521.47 | 3418.79 | −2.9% (−15.5 to 9.7) | 5200.86 | 6177.49 | 18.8% (−2.8 to 40.3)† |
| Antineoplastics | 35.38 | 34.21 | −3.3% (−15.4 to 8.7) | 46.14 | 48.13 | 4.3% (−16.3 to 24.9) |
| Cytostatic hormones | 29.48 | 30.58 | 3.7% (−10.1 to 17.6) | 39.82 | 47.52 | 19.3% (−5.1 to 43.8) |
| Immunostimulating agents | 0.65 | 0.43 | −35.0% (−45.1 to −25.0)* | 0.81 | 0.60 | −26.3% (−45.0 to −7.6)* |
*Statistically significant change (ie, CI does not include the null value of 0).
†The absolute 5-year difference, which is estimated using more precise method, is significant. See online appendix table 3.