Utilization, Spending, and Price of Opioid Medications in the US Medicaid Programs Between 1991 and 2019

The opioid epidemic and drug abuse are critical public health challenges in the United States. The number of deaths from exceeding the recommended opioid dose is increasing.

To describe the recent trends in utilization, spending, and cost of opioid medications in the US Medicaid population between 1991 and 2019.

This retrospective, descriptive study was designed to evaluate the utilization of, spending on, and cost of opioids from 1991 to 2019 in the Medicaid population. We extracted data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services national Medicaid pharmacy files. The opioids received included fentanyl, meperidine, morphine, hydromorphone, oxymorphone, hydrocodone, hydrocodone plus acetaminophen, oxycodone, oxycodone plus acetaminophen, tapentadol, and tramadol. The number of prescriptions and reimbursement spending were calculated for each medication per quarter year. The average per-prescription reimbursement as a proxy of drug price was calculated as the reimbursement amount divided by the number of prescriptions per quarter year. The market shares by spending and utilization were also calculated for each opioid medication.

The number of all opioid prescriptions in Medicaid increased from approximately 2.1 million in 1991 to approximately 41.6 million in 2015, and then reduced to approximately 19.1 million in 2019. During this 29-year study period, the opioid medications that were used as monotherapy were hydrocodone (246.8 million prescriptions), oxycodone (111.9 million prescriptions), and tramadol (75.2 million prescriptions). The total spending in the Medicaid population on opioids was $19.4 billion, including approximately $7.3 billion spending on oxycodone, approximately $3.7 billion on fentanyl, and approximately $3.3 billion on hydrocodone. The majority of opioid prices increased over time, and the highest average costs per opioid prescription in 2019 were $1188 for oxymorphone, $641 for tapentadol, and $198 for fentanyl.

The utilization of and spending on opioid medications in Medicaid increased over time, peaked in 2015, and then declined with the initiation of nationwide programs to combat the opioid epidemic. Effective cost-containment strategies and programs to combat the abuse of opioids are warranted in Medicaid programs.