Table 4.
Total and out-of-pocket costs for users of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) during recall period.a
| Interferon beta-1a (Avonex®)(n = 474) | Interferon beta 1-b (Betaseron®)(n = 301) | Glatiramer acetate (Copaxone®)(n = 641) | Interferon beta-1a (Rebif®) (n = 296) | Natalizumab (Tysabri®)(n = 196) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of months used b | |||||
| Mean (SD) MedianRange | 10.4 (3.3) 121–12 | 10.0 (3.5) 121–12 | 9.9 (3.6) 121–12 | 9.3 (3.9) 121–12 | 8.4 (4.0) 9.81–12 |
| Total price per prescription,c US$ | |||||
| 2339 | 2403 | 2536 | 2353 | 2056 | |
| Total cost per year,d US$ | |||||
| Mean (SD) MedianRange | 18,718 (9780) 23,6121080–28,074 | 17,338 (10,207) 14,9941109–28,834 | 18,928 (10,867) 18,7271127–30,431 | 17,503 (10,446) 18,0751086–56,483 | 16,302 (8272) 18,132914–24,669 |
| OOP cost e per purchase, US$ | |||||
| Mean (SD) MedianRange | 133 (489) 402–6960 | 154 (532) 501–5400 | 130 (411) 351–4325 | 150 (574) 502–7000 | 319 (1008) 505–7500 |
| OOP cost per year,e US$ | |||||
| Mean (SD) MedianRange | 939 (3109) 2726–33,600 | 1,041 (3442) 3264–28,800 | 952 (3852) 2403–49,200 | 1,088 (4347) 3001–48,000 | 3,101 (11,692) 3603–90,000 |
| Participants with zero OOP costs, n (%) | |||||
| 102 (21.5%) | 41 (13.6%) | 104 (16.2%) | 50 (16.9%) | 94 (48.0%) | |
aTotal cost is the amount paid by both insurers and patients to the pharmacy. Out-of-pocket (OOP) cost is the patient component of the total cost. Rebates and coupons are not accounted for due to data limitations. Costs are given in 2009 US dollars.
bStandardized to a 12-month interval.
cPrice per prescription = amount paid by both insurers and patients to the pharmacy per prescription estimated from 2009 State Drug Utilization Data. https://www.medicaid.gov/medicaid/prescription-drugs/state-drug-utilization-data/index.html. Accessed October 25, 2018. Prices per prescription in 2000 are available for interferon beta-1a (Avonex®) (US$784), interferon beta 1-b (Betaseron®) (US$948), and glatiramer acetate (Copaxone®) (US$781).
dTotal cost per year = price per prescription × number of prescriptions per year (or months of use if number of prescriptions missing).
eOOP cost per prescription and OOP cost per year = patient component of the applicable total costs. Excludes participants who paid zero.