Esmond D. Nwokeji

PMH81 EXAMINING THE PERCEIVED BURDEN OF PRIOR AUTHORIZATION OF PSYCHOTHERAPEUTICS AMONG TEXAS MEDICAID PRESCRIBERS

Insurance (NHI). The prices, total amounts and the market shares in different levels of health care setting were analyzed. RESULTS: Among 5 SSRI antidepressants, fluoxetine used 43.5% of the total SSRI expenditures. Compared with other SSRIs, fluoxetine also had the most number of different generic items, the shortest time lags, higher prices of the generics, and the fastest replacement rate by other generics. In 1997 the total expenditure of fluoxetine in medical centers and the district hospitals was 82.8% and 17.2% in the local hospital and the clinics. After the first entry the original drug 15 years ago, the market share of the original drug had shrunk to 1.46%. In general the prices of original drugs fell 0–6.4% in the first year while the first generic entered the market with the 80–87.7% original price. CONCLUSION: This study presented the profiles of generic competitions of SSRI antidepressants, which could provide an approach for both policy maker and industry to investigate the drug usage at national level. Except for fluoxetine, the generic market of SSRI antidepressants seem still promising.