New Year, Higher Costs: Prices Rise for More Than 500 Drugs to Start 2025

It’s become an annual rite of passage. Each January, many drugmakers hike the prices on the pharmaceuticals they produce.

Sometimes it’s a small bump, sometimes it’s a big one. This year, what stands out is the breadth of pricing increases. According to a nonprofit that tracks pricing, more than 500 medications saw prices rise as of January 1, 2025.

Who will get hit the hardest by these adjustments? People with high-deductible plans, for one. Another group that will bear the brunt of the jump is those with cost-sharing arrangements linked to the list price of the drugs.

So says 46brooklyn Research, which publishes the Brand Drug List Price Change Box Score keeping score of the wholesale acquisition costs (WAC) to drugmakers. It has noted a change since last year.

The firm’s data shows that there have been a stunning 935 WAC price increases this year (after netting out the WAC decreases). By comparison, in the same period in 2024, the organization saw 897 increases.

Every year since 2021, there have been at least 800 WAC price increases in January, to put that further in perspective. The number has been on a steady rise. Back in 2012, 46brooklyn Research recorded just 343 WAC price increases during January.

Median Hike of 4% in Pricing

So how much did prices actually rise? Actually, not as much as in past years. 46brooklyn Research found that this year’s median price jump so far was 4%, the smallest rise since at least 2012. Last year, the average increase was 4.5%, but it has been as high as 9% in 2014, 2015 and 2016.

Perhaps more interestingly, only five drugs have seen price decreases this year.

The numbers measure the “sticker price” of drugs without any discounts, hence the higher prices for those with the high-deductible and cost-sharing arrangements. Insurance companies usually negotiate prices below the sticker cost for their members—they have enough reach and influence to be able to do that with drugmakers.

It’s also, unfortunately, not unheard of for pharmaceutical companies to jack up prices as a way to ensure that when they negotiate with insurers, they will still get decent returns.

What Drugs Are Seeing the Biggest Price Increases?

Of course, what most people want to know is whether they will be paying more for the medicines they take. Here are a few of the largest price pops that 46brooklyn Research pointed out:

• Novo Nordisk's Ozempic solution for injection

• Harmony's Wakix oral tablet

• Bausch's Aplenzin oral tablet, extended release

• Collegium's Nucynta oral tablet

That last one, which is used to treat pain, saw one of the steepest increases at 15%.

Medicine prices will continue on the upward slope for the foreseeable future. It’s simply become part of the American health care system. But if you want to know how this could impact your bottom line or what it means for your Medicare, then you should consult Jay to discuss your individual situation. Get in touch today to ask your questions!