Even though it’s hardly news that Americans spend a fortune on prescription medicine, the exact totals of that spending can still pack some sticker shock. According to the latest data from the federal government's Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Americans spent a total of $151 billion on outpatient prescriptions  in 2002—an amount nearly 2.5 times greater than the $65 billion spent in 1996, and almost equal to the entire 2004 national budget of the world's ninth largest economy (Mexico). And  this figure does not include any over-the-counter remedies or drugs prescribed in hospitals, nursing homes or other institutions.

The top-ten list of costliest drugs, with a combined pricetag of nearly $30 billion, was led by Lipitor, the cholesterol-lowering drug, at a cost of $5.9 billion. Cholesterol competitors Zocor and Pravachol also made the top ten, as did anti-ulcer drugs Prevacid and Prilosec, and anti-depressants Paxil and Zoloft.

Sorting the data by number of prescriptions filled, rather than cost, produces a different top ten, which includes five anti-hypertensive drugs, though the list is still led by Lipitor, with 67 million prescriptions. But anyway you slice it, the country's medicine chest is stuffed and growing.

From our archive:
02/02/2004  Why We Pay So Much for Drugs

Top ten prescription drugs for 2002 ranked by U.S. expenditure according to the study by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality:

1. Lipitor (cholesterol reducer)     $5.9 billion
2. Zocor (cholesterol reducer)       $4.4 billion
3. Prevacid (anti-ulcer)                  $3.0 billion
4. Prilosec (anti-ulcer)                   $2.6 billion
5. Celebrex (Cox-2 inhibitor
    anti-inflammatory)                    $2.4 billion*   
6. Paxil (anti-depressant)              $2.2 billion
7. Pravachol (cholesterol reducer) $2.1 billion
8. Zoloft (anti-depressant)            $2.1 billion
9. Claritin (antihistamine)              $2.1 billion**   
10. Norvasc (anti-hypertensive)    $2.1 billion

*   In late 2004, FDA issued warnings about possible side effects of Celebrex.
** In late 2002, Claritin became available over the counter without a prescription.