Why Is Eliquis So Expensive?

American consumers often question why they have to pay such high prices for prescription medications compared to many other countries around the world. Even life-saving medications, such as Eliquis, are available at much cheaper prices overseas compared to the United States. It’s a complicated situation, and there are various reasons why prescription drugs like Eliquis are so expensive in the U.S.

Please continue reading to learn why Eliquis cost is so high, whether generic alternatives are available, and how you can save money on Eliquis if you don’t have prescription drug coverage.

What is Eliquis?

Eliquis is a brand drug that contains the active ingredient apixaban. Eliquis’ drug class is anti-Xa inhibitors. Though, this prescription medicine is generally classified as an antithrombotic. Antithrombotics are drugs that are prescribed to patients who need extra protection to prevent blood clots.

There are two types of antithrombotics:

Antiplatelet agents like aspirin, ticlopidine (Ticlid), and dipyridamole (Persantine).
Anticoagulants or blood thinners like warfarin, heparin, rivaroxaban (Xarelto), edoxaban (Lixiana), dabigatran (Pradaxa), and apixaban (Eliquis).

Warfarin and heparin are older anticoagulants, and they are widely prescribed to patients at a high risk of blood clots. However, newer agents like Eliquis developed in the past couple of decades have proven to be equally if not more effective with fewer risks of bleeding and drug interactions.

How does Eliquis work?

Eliquis (apixaban) is an oral factor Xa inhibitor. Factor Xa is a key blood-clotting protein. Eliquis decreases blood clot formation by inhibiting or blocking the action of factor Xa.

What is Eliquis used to treat?

A healthcare provider may prescribe Eliquis for one of the following reasons:

To reduce the risk of stroke due to non-valvular atrial fibrillation afib (a type of irregular heartbeat that is not caused by a heart valve problem).
To treat blood clots in the veins of the lungs or legs and prevent them from occurring again (blood clots in the lungs are called pulmonary embolism or PE and blood clots in the legs are called deep vein thrombosis or DVT).
To decrease the risk of deep vein thrombosis in patients who have undergone hip or knee replacement surgery.

How much does Eliquis cost?

How much you pay for your Eliquis prescription can vary widely and depends on many factors, such as your health insurance coverage plan - Medicare Pay, Medicare Advantage, Medicare Part D, or a coverage plan from a commercial insurance company. While many insurance plans cover Eliquis, the deductibles or co-pays can vary greatly depending on your plan’s health insurance coverage for prescription drugs. Pharmacy selection can also affect the cost of prescription medicine significantly.

Brand name drugs cost more than the generic versions. At present, since the generic drug apixaban is not available in the U.S., American consumers have to buy brand name Eliquis and pay more for their prescriptions.

The cost of Eliquis is approximately $529 for a 30-day supply, which works out to nearly $18 per pill.

Now, here’s some math for you (assuming you will be taking Eliquis for 5 years):

A 30-day supply of Eliquis costs $529 (list price as of January 2022) x 60 months (5 years) = $31,740.

Over $30,000! It’s no wonder many people are waiting for the generic version to become available and looking for discounted Eliquis. Drug discount coupons from BuzzRx can lower costs significantly and save you hundreds or even thousands of dollars on your Eliquis prescription.

Is Eliquis the most expensive blood thinner?

Eliquis is an expensive medication, and yes, it is one of the most expensive blood thinners in the U.S. along with Xarelto. The approximate prices (monthly prescriptions) for some blood thinners are listed below:

So, as you can see, Eliquis is the most expensive drug used to prevent blood clots.

Why is the price of Eliquis so high?

Americans pay more for prescription medications than any other country in the world. The reason is simple - The United States government does not place restrictions on pharmaceutical companies on how much they can charge for brand-name drugs. Most other countries have regulations that limit the markup pharmaceutical companies can add to the manufacturing costs of a drug. The goal of these government regulations in other countries is to make prescription drug coverage more affordable and accessible for their citizens.

But it’s not black and white. It may seem like other countries prioritize the health of their citizens, and the U.S. does not. But while regulations in other countries make sure everyone has access to prescription drugs at affordable prices, in the U.S., the government wants to make sure pharmaceutical companies are profitable so that they can invest back in developing new drugs.

To what degree pharmaceutical companies actually do this is another matter. But Big Pharma profits are mind-boggling. Pfizer — the largest pharmaceutical company globally — had revenues of nearly $82 billion in 2021.

The other key factor that affects the prices of prescription drugs in the U.S. is patent protection. Most new drugs have an exclusivity period of around 20 years, meaning no one except the drug developer can sell the same drug for two decades. This is to allow the pharmaceutical company that developed the drug to recover research and development costs. However, until the exclusivity period expires and a low-cost generic drug becomes available, the price of a prescription medication can be exorbitant.

Is Eliquis going generic in 2022?

The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) had granted approval for generic Eliquis (apixaban) to two pharmaceutical companies, Micro Labs Limited and Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc.

However, in August 2020, the manufacturers of Eliquis – Pfizer and Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) – won an appeal in federal court, which upheld their patent claim for this medication. As a result, rival companies cannot produce a low-cost generic version of Eliquis for at least six years (until 2026).

What is the cheapest way to get Eliquis?

An untreated or undertreated medical condition such as atrial fibrillation (Afib) or blood clots in the legs or lungs (deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, respectively) can lead to serious health consequences, including death. If you cannot get treatment for these conditions because you can’t afford Eliquis, the results could quite literally be deadly.

A BuzzRx Eliquis coupon can help you save money on this prescription blood thinner and brand name medication. The retail price for the most common version of Eliquis is $529 on average, but with your free BuzzRx Eliquis discount card, you could pay under $282 for 30 tablets of Eliquis 5 mg at a participating pharmacy in our network, including Walgreens, Walmart, CVS, Rite Aid, Kroger, Publix, and others. To participate in the discount program, simply ask your pharmacist to enter your BuzzRx Eliquis coupon or savings card when you drop off your prescription at the pharmacy counter. This will ensure you’re getting the most significant discounts and paying the lowest Eliquis prices.

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