Tampa, Florida (July 14, 2010) – PMSI, one of the nation’s largest providers of specialty products and services for the workers’ compensation market, today announced the release of its 2010 Annual Drug Trends Report. The report represents one of the most extensive analyses of workers’ compensation pharmacy spend and is based upon PMSI’s analysis of millions of retail and mail order pharmacy transactions from 2009.
 
“PMSI is a leader in providing insight specific to the workers’ compensation market,” stated Jay Krueger, PMSI’s Chief Strategy Officer. “Our annual reports have consistently served as a valuable resource to help our customers understand market trends, benchmark their programs and gain insight on how to better manage prescription drug spend.”
 
The 2010 report identifies the key drivers of pharmacy spend increases in 2009, including the impact of price, utilization, drug mix and a review of the most commonly seen therapeutic classes in workers’ compensation. The report also identifies strategies for pain management, recognizing that 75% of drug spend in workers’ compensation is related to medications that manage pain.
 
Significant findings in the report include:
?        Average pharmacy spend per injured worker increased by 6.5% in 2009
?        Growth in total spend was attributed to increases in prescription price of 4.7% and net change in utilization of 1.7%
?        Utilization changes were driven largely by a 2.2% increase in the days of supply per prescription from 27.6 days in 2008 to 28.2 days in 2009
?        The use of narcotic analgesics for the treatment of new injuries decreased 7.8%, indicating that narcotic analgesics are being used less often as first-line agents to control pain
 
“A number of complex factors drive pharmacy spend,” said Maria Sciame, PharmD, Executive Director of Clinical Services, PMSI. “Nearly all of these factors can be significantly influenced by a proactive, clinically based program that addresses the unique needs of workers’ compensation such as PMSI’s MedAssessTM program. Customers that have implemented MedAssess have seen direct savings and improved quality of life for their injured workers.”
 
For the complete 2010 Annual Drug Trends Report, or to register for PMSI’s upcoming Drug Trends webcast, visit www.pmsionline.com. To schedule an interview with Dr. Maria Sciame, contact Audrey Jackson at 813.318.6810 or audrey.jackson@pmsionline.com.
 
About PMSI:
PMSI is one of the nation’s largest full-service providers of clinically driven services for Pharmacy, Medical Services and Equipment, and Settlement Solutions and is devoted exclusively to the workers’ compensation and liability markets. For over 34 years, PMSI has led the industry and served as the trusted resource for thousands of insurance payers, state workers’ compensation funds, employers, and third-party administrators. Today, PMSI continues its leadership position by managing millions of pharmacy, medical services and equipment, and settlement transactions each year. For more information, please refer to the PMSI website at www.pmsionline.com.

PMSI Contact:
Shelia Chapman
Executive Director, Marketing
877.ASK.PMSI
shelia.chapman@pmsionline.com