Most Prescribed Drugs for Kids

Another factoid from USA Today…Healthcare (due to costs) has been a front page issue in business for most of the past decade. Just over the past 3-5 years has it become a front page consumer issue. It is rare that I can pick up USA Today, go to MSN, or open up my iGoogle news page and not see one or more article about healthcare. This is certainly a positive step in the consumerism path.

None of us would be ready to take on more responsibility for our healthcare until it becomes ingrained in our head about the basic market dynamics and sources of information.

This list of drugs is pretty telling about children. As I have heard asked many times “Are these conditions really more prevalent today or are we better at diagnosing them or are we simply a culture that is more willing to medicate marginally impacted people to stop any problem?”

Here is a chart from the 2004 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey which shows the top 5 drugs based on spending (in millions). (shown in USA Today Snapshots on Nov. 13^th on the frontpage of Section D)