Top pharma products by prescriptions U.S. 2020

With nearly 115 million dispensed prescriptions, atorvastatin was the most prescribed medicine in the United States in 2020. Atorvastatin is a medicine used to help lower cholesterol and can also be taken to prevent heart disease. The number of prescriptions issued for the drug increased by 10 million between 2017 and 2020.

Top therapeutic classes and products

There were 1.2 billion prescriptions written for antihypertensive drugs in 2021, making it the therapeutic category with the most dispensed prescriptions in the United States. Approximately 74 billion U.S. dollars were spent on antidiabetics in the United States in 2020, making it the therapy area where the second most money was spent. Humira – a branded drug used to treat arthritis – was the top medicine based on pre-COVID-19 sales in the United States, generating around 21 billion U.S. dollars.

Does health insurance cover prescription drugs?

More than 570 billion U.S. dollars was spent on medicines in the United States in 2021. The majority of the population of the United States has health insurance, which includes prescription drug coverage. However, there are occasions when the health insurance plan does not cover the drug prescribed by a doctor. When this happens, patients may have to pay the full price of the medication out of their own pocket.