The use of drug delivered on ordinance in the United States fell last year, although the total expenditure on increased drugs as price went up abruptly on products of name of mark, director of advantages of pharmacy that Medco Health Solutions indicated Wednesday.

Medco indicated that the total decline in the regulations was the first in one decade. The company, which handles advantages of drug covering approximately 60 million people, said that the total use of regulation was in fall because few new drugs were launched last year, of old drugs of spectacular as Zyrtec became available without regulation, and some drugs faced exits of safety that led to the decreased use.

These factors had a greater impact on regulations than the recession, the company indicated.

The total expenditure raised 3.3 percent, Medco indicated, mainly had with larger of use speciality drugs, which often treat chronic diseases or complexes. The strongest growth came from drugs of diabetes, and the use of the treatments of speciality for cancer, along the disease rheumatological, by the disorders of seizure and antiviral drugs also increased. The average costs of pharmaceutical of name of mark went up more than 8 percent in 2008, the fastest increase in five years.

Medco indicated that prices of drug of speciality go up more quickly than those for other drugs. Drugs of speciality require often special handling that is not necessary for other drugs, like the refrigeration or protection against the light, and much must be managed by a doctor or a nurse instead of the patient.

The pharmacists tend to increase the price of a product while the date of its expiry of patent approaches. After the principal patents supporting a drug expire, carried generic of versions usually the market and are available for a fraction of the price.

Several pharmacists quoted prices more raised in their reports/ratios of incomes of the first quarter. Bristol-Myers Squibb, which makes the drug of Plavix anti-coagulation, indicated that higher prices were responsible for half of its growth of income of first quarter of 2009.

The regulations of projects of Medco will not go up more than 1 percent in 2009 and 2010 as well. But he believes that higher prices will raise the total expenditure by 3 to 5 percent this year and 4 to 6 percent the next year.

Franklin lakes, NR. J. - Medco based is the largest director of advantages of pharmacy in the United States. The company filled last year almost 800 million regulations.

The income of drugs of speciality rose almost 16 percent during the year. Medco indicated that the increasing use of inexpensive generic drugs reduced the growth of the total expenditure: 64 percent of all the regulations were filled of generic drugs. Medco and other directors of advantages of pharmacy carry out a greater benefit when generic drugs are substituted in the name of mark those. They encourage plans of health to develop manners of increasing the use of generic medicines and of 90 regulations of mail-order selling of day.

Some drugs which were previously available only with one regulation became the cash in 2008, reducing total regulations. The great names were Zyrtec, a drug of allergy, and laxative Miralax. The use of drug was primarily punt with 2008 if Zyrtec and Miralax are excluded, Medco said.

The regulations for people 19 and below developed more quickly than for any other category of age. Medco indicated which was due to the rates being in rise of diabetes among the young people, and more regulations for lack of concentration and the problems similar.

Several billion drugs of dollar-sale took last year of the blows due at the potential ends of safety. The sales of the Avandia treatment of diabetes fell after the Food and Drug Administration� added new warnings to its labelling, specifying concern concerning of the problems of heart. The sales of Vytorin drug of cholesterol fell after a study released in January showed it that was not better than a older drug, Zocor, to reduce the preparing of plate in arteries of neck. Zocor is available in generic form for approximately 80 percent less.

The sales of Amgen of 's Aranesp and other drugs employed to treat chemotherapy-induced anaemia had slipped during two years, since the studies connected drugs to the faster growth of some tumours. Medco indicated also affected sales of exits of safety of the therapies of drugs of osteoporosis and replacement of hormone, and wounded sales of recalls of products of migraine and cough and cold therapies.