According to a new report from the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, total U.S. prescription drug spending rose 12.7 percent in 2025 to $915 billion. The report forecasts overall growth of 10 to 12 percent during 2026, with clinic spending expected to rise 14 to 16 percent and hospital spending by 4 to 6 percent. Significantly, the increase appears to be driven mainly by more patients using more drugs.
A major factor in this surge is the rapid expansion of GLP-1 medicines used for weight loss and diabetes treatment. Drugs such as Tirzepatide and Semaglutide each generated more than $60 billion in spending in 2025. Together, GLP-1 medicines accounted for roughly $132 billion – about 14 percent of all U.S. prescription drug spending and nearly one-third of total spending growth during the year. Because these figures do not include direct-to-consumer sales, however, their full economic impact is likely to be even larger.
To learn the facts about the drug business that the mainstream/legacy media is hiding from you, see the ‘The Laws of the Pharmaceutical Industry’ feature on our website.
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May 8, 2026U.S. Prescription Drug Spending Set to Exceed $1 Trillion in 2026
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U.S. prescription drug spending is on track to surpass $1 trillion for the first time in 2026.
[Source: pharmexec.com]
[Image source: pixabay.com]
Comment
According to a new report from the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, total U.S. prescription drug spending rose 12.7 percent in 2025 to $915 billion. The report forecasts overall growth of 10 to 12 percent during 2026, with clinic spending expected to rise 14 to 16 percent and hospital spending by 4 to 6 percent. Significantly, the increase appears to be driven mainly by more patients using more drugs.
A major factor in this surge is the rapid expansion of GLP-1 medicines used for weight loss and diabetes treatment. Drugs such as Tirzepatide and Semaglutide each generated more than $60 billion in spending in 2025. Together, GLP-1 medicines accounted for roughly $132 billion – about 14 percent of all U.S. prescription drug spending and nearly one-third of total spending growth during the year. Because these figures do not include direct-to-consumer sales, however, their full economic impact is likely to be even larger.
To learn the facts about the drug business that the mainstream/legacy media is hiding from you, see the ‘The Laws of the Pharmaceutical Industry’ feature on our website.
Dr. Rath Health Foundation
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