Pharmaceutical corporations just raised list prices for over 500 medicines, including Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic, Gilead’s HIV-1 treatment Biktarvy and Genentech’s hemophilia A drugs Hemlibra.
Drugmakers typically increase prices within the U.S. every January, in line with 46brooklyn Research, a nonprofit group that analyzes drug prices. And although this month’s price hikes are comparable with those in recent times, consumers and insurance firms will likely feel the impact.
“For patients in high-deductible health plans or who’ve cost sharing arrangements which might be based on the list price, the increases will hit them,” Antonio Ciaccia, CEO of 46brooklyn, writes in an email to Money.
The median increase amongst medicines with a price hike was about 4% for 2025. That is actually barely below the standard increases from 2019 to 2024, which ranged from 4.5% to five%. Of all of the January 2025 price changes thus far recorded, only seven have been price decreases.
The list price is the total “sticker” price of a medication before any discounts. Insurance firms then negotiate discounts and rebates on drug prices, which suggests their net price — what they really pay — is often lower than the list price.
Still, Ciaccia says, a listing price increase can result in the next cost for insurance firms, depending on the competitive landscape of the actual drug.
In other cases, drug corporations may increase list prices to have the ability to supply larger rebates, making their medicines eligible for presidency programs like Medicaid. “For presidency programs, these price increases could actually yield increased rebates (that even eclipse the worth of the rise itself),” Ciaccia says.
The high cost of pharmaceuticals is a relentless topic of debate within the U.S., as studies have shown that Americans spend much more on medications than people in other countries.
Representatives in Washington offer differing views about what’s improper with the drug pricing systems within the U.S. Democrats have criticized big pharmaceutical corporations for his or her exorbitant drug prices, arguing that firms aiming to maximise profits have prioritized payouts to investors and executives over research and development. Republicans tend in charge high costs on powerful pharmacy profit managers, that are middlemen between drugmakers and insurers.
Notable prescription drug price increases for 2025
Pfizer shows up in 46brookyn’s database of drug price increases greater than another drugmaker, with 67 price increases. Other large pharmaceutical corporations including GSK, Bausch, Gilead and Bayer each increased prices for not less than 10 products.
Listed below are 10 of the biggest and most impactful prescription drug prices, highlighted by 46brooklyn:
- Collegium’s Nucynta oral tablet — 15% list price increase
- Bausch’s Aplenzin oral tablet, prolonged release — 9.9%
- Genentech’s Hemlibra solution for injection — 8%
- Harmony’s Wakix oral tablet — 7%
- Almirall’s Aczone topical gel — 6.1%
- Gilead’s Biktarvy oral tablet — 5.9%
- Entasis’s Xacduro powder for solution for injection — 5.1%
- BioMarin’s Palynziq solution for injection — 4.6%
- Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic solution for injection — 3%
- Boehringer Ingelheim’s Jardiance oral tablet — 3%
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