Recovery Michigan

Medicaid is expected to save billions of dollars a year as patents for several blockbuster antipsychotic medications expire and use of generic versions of these drugs increases, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. These savings may provide relief from the high costs of these medications and allow policymakers to lift restrictions on patients' access, the researchers argue.

The study forecast that annual Medicaid payments for antipsychotic medicines will decrease by nearly $1.8 billion (or nearly 50 percent) by 2016 and by $2.8 billion (or 76 percent) by 2019. The forecasting models were developed by the authors, Eric Slade, PhD, an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Linda Simoni-Wastila, BSPharm, MSPH, PhD, a professor at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy. The study, the first to look at these possible cost savings, was published in the July issue of the journal Psychiatric Services.

The researchers predicted changes in overall Medicaid spending for antipsychotics between 2011 and 2019. In 2011, Medicaid spent more than $3.6 billion on second-generation antipsychotics. Five branded medications -- aripiprazole, quetiapine, olanzapine, ziprasidone, and paliperidone -- accounted for $3.3 billion or 90 percent of this spending. Medicaid is the major payer for antipsychotic medications in the U.S., accounting for between 70 percent and 80 percent of all antipsychotic prescriptions.