While private insurance and government programs in the United States covered the highest amount of prescription drug costs of ten Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, the US also had the highest out-of-pocket costs for patients.
Sweden covered the least amount of prescription drug costs with private insurance and government programs. And patients paid the least out-of-pocket in the United Kingdom.
Prescription drug spending per person (including private insurance, government programs, and out-of-pocket spending) has increased steadily from 2004 to 2019.
However, the United States has maintained the highest costs of 12 OECD countries, increasing from $668.15 in 2004 to $1126.27 in 2019. Sweden and the United Kingdom have maintained the lowest prices per person.
Prescription Drug Spending Per Person:
Insurance or Government Health Program v. Out-of-Pocket Costs,
2004-2019
All costs below are in US dollars.
| Costs Covered by Private Insurance or Government Health Program | Patient Out-of-Pocket Costs |
|
|---|---|---|
| Australia | $331.80 | $102.40 |
| Austria | $463.68 | $56.72 |
| Belgium | $381.17 | $131.43 |
| Canada | $590.39 | $147.41 |
| Germany | $769.75 | $55.42 |
| Japan | $589.07 | $93.63 |
| Sweden | $269.74 | $108.52 |
| Switzerland | $523.75 | $88.73 |
| United Kingdom | $272.68 | $12.16 |
| United States | $962.55 | $163.72 |
Prescription Drug Spending Per Person, 2004-2019
All costs below are in US dollars.
| Year | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | $332.98 | $330.20 | $338.84 | $362.36 | $380.73 | $390.24 |
| Austria | $358.90 | $359.05 | $378.44 | $404.84 | $429.62 | $399.14 |
| Belgium | $446.37 | $439.38 | $440.73 | $461.00 | $440.83 | $445.64 |
| Canada | $460.21 | $489.79 | $518.73 | $546.67 | $565.22 | $581.29 |
| France | $471.37 | $486.35 | $498.91 | $510.12 | $518.75 | $525.35 |
| Germany | $405.60 | $451.92 | $464.34 | $503.10 | $536.00 | $564.52 |
| Japan | $359.93 | $404.43 | $420.02 | $445.60 | $467.33 | $525.09 |
| Sweden | $298.20 | $298.30 | $310.43 | $326.55 | $339.57 | $334.57 |
| United States | $668.15 | $705.87 | $764.46 | $794.52 | $803.45 | $828.80 |
*Data from Switzerland and the United Kingdom was not available for 2004-2009.
| Year | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | $398.55 | $406.43 | $403.92 | $424.91 | $416.92 |
| Austria | $407.25 | $416.16 | $429.90 | $439.70 | $455.68 |
| Belgium | $458.76 | $466.84 | $460.70 | $470.38 | $471.40 |
| Canada | $643.24 | $638.97 | $637.04 | $633.09 | $633.15 |
| France | $535.45 | $537.84 | $531.59 | $538.15 | $536.96 |
| Germany | $587.21 | $576.85 | $590.37 | $610.51 | $659.45 |
| Japan | $550.65 | $607.01 | $635.68 | $700.88 | $694.05 |
| Sweden | $330.11 | $331.05 | $329.05 | $320.01 | $325.92 |
| Switzerland | $439.37 | $449.50 | $471.29 | $488.73 | $500.17 |
| United Kingdom | n/a | n/a | n/a | $276.66 | $279.86 |
| United States | $819.12 | $822.73 | $818.88 | $831.11 | $936.35 |
*Data from the United Kingdom was not available for 2004-2009.
| Year | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | $425.62 | $473.92 | $442.27 | $434.21 | $434.21 |
| Austria | $470.92 | $478.40 | $493.97 | $506.87 | $520.40 |
| Belgium | $493.27 | $505.64 | $493.98 | $505.64 | $512.61 |
| Canada | $651.91 | $706.37 | $714.42 | $731.16 | $737.80 |
| France | $528.30 | $540.28 | $537.39 | $536.11 | $533.11 |
| Germany | $676.67 | $724.26 | $751.39 | $786.08 | $825.16 |
| Japan | $751.19 | $674.13 | $691.77 | $682.70 | $682.70 |
| Sweden | $341.01 | $360.09 | $351.30 | $376.61 | $378.26 |
| Switzerland | $530.77 | $572.07 | $595.51 | $596.58 | $612.49 |
| United Kingdom | $288.31 | $293.15 | $294.10 | $286.56 | $284.84 |
| United States | $1011.645 | $1021.52 | $1037.29 | $1070.84 | $1126.27 |
Source
Nisha Kurani, Dustin Cotliar, and Cynthia Cox, “How Do Prescription Drug Costs in the United States Compare to Other Countries?,” healthsystemtracker.org, Feb. 8, 2022