Average Annual Total Expenses, Total Utilization, and Sources of Payment for Outpatient Prescription Opioids in the U.S. Adult Civilian Noninstitutionalized Population

Utilization of and expenditures for opioids for pain management continue to be critical areas of research due to the significant impact these medications have on both public health and the economy. 

Average Annual Total Expenses, Total Utilization, and Sources of Payment for Outpatient Prescription Opioids in the U.S. Adult Civilian Noninstitutionalized Population, a statistical brief from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Household Component, investigates opioid utilization and expenditures among adults (ages 18 and older) within the U.S. civilian non-institutionalized population.

Highlights:

• In 2021-2022, average annual total outpatient prescription opioid expenses for adults were $3.5 billion, with oxycodone and hydrocodone together accounting for nearly 75 percent of total spending ($1.9 and $0.7 billion, respectively). 
• Total outpatient prescription opioid fills for adults totaled 68.6 million, with hydrocodone, oxycodone, and tramadol accounting for the majority of these fills (25.2 million, 19.2 million, and 14.1 million fills, respectively). 
• Average annual total spending per person with any use for all outpatient prescription opioids in 2021-2022 was $174, with out-of-pocket costs averaging $31. 
• Of the top five opioids (ranked by expenditures), medications containing oxycodone and morphine had the highest average annual spending per user at $282 and $234, respectively. Oxycodone also had the highest average total payment per fill at $99. 
• On average, Medicare covered a larger portion of the spending for hydrocodone (43.9 percent), oxycodone (39.0 percent), and tramadol (49.5 percent) than other insurers. 
• In 2021-2022, the share of spending financed by private insurance / TRICARE was larger for all prescription drugs (40.1 percent) than for opioids (27.4 percent) while the Medicare share of spending was similar for all drugs (34.5 percent) and opioids (38.6 percent).

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