Metric: Specialty drugs emerge as key price driver

The growth rate on drug spending in the U.S. slowed to 5.4 percent last year, according to Medco Health Solutions, as spending on Cox-2 pain relievers dipped considerably. But spending on specialty drugs emerged as the single biggest cost driver in pharmaceuticals, with spending on rheumatoid arthritis, cancer, high cholesterol and asthma all rising at the highest rates. Drug spending in 2004 swelled 8.5 percent. "Although the number of people taking prescription drugs continues to grow, patients and physicians are increasingly recognizing the financial burden borne by payers, such as private employers, and are embracing the availability of fiscally prudent quality-care alternatives, including the acceptance of generic medicines," Medco Chairman and CEO David B. Snow, Jr., said in a statement.

- here's the article from MarketWatch on drug prices