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Ozempic, Biktarvy Among the Drugs Seeing List Price Increases at the Start of 2025
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Key Takeaways
- January 1, 2025, marked significant brand drug price changes, with 590 adjustments, predominantly increases, and only 7 decreases.
- Notable drugs like Biktarvy, Ozempic, and Hemlibra saw price hikes, while Januvia experienced a 42% decrease.
At the start of 2025, 590 drug prices changed, with only 7 drugs seeing decreases in wholesale acquisition costs (WAC).
Roughly a third of all brand drug price increases occur on January 1, and this year is no different. For 2025, January 1 represented approximately 39% of brand drug price change activity compared with 16% to 17% in 2011 and 2012. According to a report from 46brooklyn, there were 590 drug price changes at the start of 2025, only 7 of which were decreases in wholesale acquisition costs (WAC).1
Drug Prices, Ozempic, Biktarvy | Image Credit: lucid_dream | stock.adobe.com
The 7 drug decreases were not as impactful this year compared with the 25 drug price decreases seen in January 2024. Some products saw approximately a 50% decrease in price, but some medications increased their price by more than 20%.1
Notable changes were made for the following drugs, among others1:
- Bictegravir, emtricitabine & tenofovir alafenamide (Biktarvy; Gilead), seeing a 5.9% WAC increase
- Semaglutide (Ozempic; Novo Nordisk), seeing a 3% increase
- Empagliflozin (Jardiance; Boehringer Ingelheim), seeing a 3% increase
- Apixaban (Eliquis; Bristol Myers Squibb), seeing a 2% increase
- Emicizumab-kxwh (Hemlibra; Genentech), seeing an 8% increase
- Aripiprazole (Abilify Maintena; Otsuka), seeing a 3% increase
- Somatropin (Norditropin; Novo Nordisk), seeing a 5% increase
- Sitagliptin (Januvia; Merck), seeing a 42% decrease.
Some of these drugs will see future potential price reductions, as the US Department of Health and Services (HHS) enters negotiations for better prices. Recently, HHS announced the next 15 drugs for price negotiation under Medicare Part D. As part of the Inflation Reduction Act, semaglutide was included as part of the new price negotiations as well as sitagliptin and metformin (Janumet, Janumet XR; Merck). The drug companies will have until February 28, 2025, to decide whether they will pursue the negotiations for their drugs.2
Notably, apixaban, empagliflozin, and sitagliptin were all included in the first round of price negotiations with the prices going into effect January 1, 2026. Merck stated that the decrease of sitagliptin was not related to the price negotiations, according to the report. Importantly, apixaban, empagliflozin, and semaglutide all saw price increases—despite inclusion in the Medicare Part D negotiation. As of January 1, 2026, apixaban is expected to have a 56% decrease and empagliflozin a 66% decrease. Semaglutide’s price will be announced at a later date, should Novo Nordisk decide to negotiate the price.1-3
For the 8 drugs mentioned in the 46brooklyn report, the therapies represent over $1 billion in annualized gross Medicaid expenditures. Additionally, the report mentions that the cost is before measuring rebates and discounts for the list prices—which could be worth more than $330 billion. The investigators also highlighted a decrease in the price for as sitagliptin and metformin (Janumet and Janumet XR), tiotropium bromine (Spiriva; Boehringer Ingelheim), ipratropium bromine (Atrovent; Boehringer Ingelheim), doxylamine succinate and pyridoxine hydrochloride tablet (Diclegis; Duchesnay), and sofafenib (Nexavar; Bayer). For all the drugs with decreases, the combined WAC prices represent approximately $2 billion in gross PYME, according to the analysis.1
Furthermore, the authors note that tapentadol (Nucynta, Nucynta ER; Collegium) also saw price increases, which is significant because they account for some of the last branded opioids on the market that do not have a generic alternative, having an increase of 15%and 20%, respectively.1
