Pharmaceutical Strategies Group Releases Proprietary Report on State of Specialty Spend and Trend

Actionable insights for specialty drug cost savings delivered in PSG’s fourth annual integrated pharmacy and medical benefit report

PLANO, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Pharmaceutical Strategies Group (PSG) unveils new insights and opportunities for specialty drug savings with the release of the fourth annual State of Specialty Spend and Trend Report. This highly anticipated report uses integrated pharmacy and medical claims data to share a complete picture of specialty spend and trend.

PSG’s State of Specialty Spend and Trend Report details specialty drug utilization and gross spending through the lens of PSG’s proprietary Artemetrx^® platform, which provides an integrated view of specialty costs.

“Trend increased by 13.6 percent in 2019, and we are forecasting the double-digit trend to continue, due to increases in utilization,” said Michael Lonergan, RPh, President of PSG’s drug management solutions business. “Powerful insights like these are at our fingertips every day with Artemetrx. It’s the most comprehensive reporting and analytics tool in the market for the management of drug spend.”

This report analyzed 99 million pharmacy and medical claims to provide an integrated understanding of the current state of specialty spend and trend. The report delivers insights such as:

• 18 percent increase in members utilizing at least one specialty drug (2017 to 2019)
• 19.1 percent increase in specialty pharmacy benefit spend in 2019
• 11.6 percent projected annual specialty growth rate over the next three years
• 86 percent of total specialty spend is in the top 10 specialty categories
• The top five specialty drugs by overall spend are all in the inflammatory disorders drug category

“We identified $4.8 billion in actionable drug cost savings for PSG clients last year alone,” said Renee Rayburg, RPh, Vice President of Specialty Clinical Consulting. “This year’s report features specific areas of specialty spend that should command your attention, and the actions you can take to minimize the impact of rising costs. We cover strategies focusing on impactful themes like identifying high-cost outlier claims and leveraging the potential of biosimilars.”

This year’s State of Specialty Spend and Trend Report continues to reflect PSG’s 25-year legacy of relentless client advocacy. The report is available for download effective October 7, 2020.

Download the report

https://www.psgconsults.com/specialtyreport

About PSG

For more than 25 years, PSG has been relentlessly advocating for our clients as they navigate the complex and ever-changing challenges of drug cost management. Our innovative drug management solutions, including our proprietary data and analytics platform, Artemetrx, deliver actionable insights with exceptional financial and clinical value. We function as a strategic partner through our industry-leading intelligence and technologies to realize billions of dollars in drug cost savings for our clients every year.