Annual Medication Use and Costs Among Children

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2831871 An AHRQ-supported study in JAMA Network Open identified opportunities for improved patient safety and cost savings if medication therapy management coverage is made available to pediatric patients. For adult beneficiaries who meet the pharmaceutical cost threshold, Medicare covers the cost of a comprehensive management program proven to reduce spending and medication-related problems. Researchers reviewed the records of 529,055 children prescribed one or more medications annually in the 2022 Colorado All Payers Claims Database and found that 50 percent of patients had no concurrent medications, 44 percent had two to four concurrent medications and 6 percent had five or more concurrent medications. Of the $1.1 billion spent on prescriptions, 47 percent was spent for patients taking five or more medications. According to the article, 5 percent of pediatric patients in Colorado met the 2022 medication cost threshold for adults enrolled in Medicare to receive medication therapy management.