In recent years, pharmacy costs have been one of the fastest growing segments of the total cost of health care both nationally and in California -- taking their toll on health plans, medical groups, employers, hospitals, and consumers alike. The major causes of drug spending increases are generally recognized to be the increased availability of new drugs and the increased use of drugs (more prescriptions being filled each year).

Californians are moving at a faster pace than the rest of the nation in both spending and utilization of retail prescription drugs. At the same time, Californians are filling fewer prescriptions and spending significantly less money on drugs, on average, than other Americans. This report provides an analysis of the key trends and drivers affecting California’s changing pharmaceutical utilization and costs in an effort to explain these forces and explore meaningful solutions.

The full report is available under Document Downloads below.