Trends in Medicare Part D Inhaler Spending: 2012-2018

Medicare Part D spent $39.7 billion on inhalers between 2012 and 2018, with spending growing 45.2% over the period. 88.4% of this spending was driven by increased utilization of combination long-acting maintenance inhalers rather than rising per-inhaler costs. These findings highlight that limited generic competition for inhalers, combined with growing use of expensive combination products, has been a major driver of Medicare respiratory drug expenditures.