1. Most wasteful: Mississippi
2. Most wasteful: Louisiana ($1,601)
3. Most wasteful: Arkansas ($1,434)
4. Most wasteful: Alabama ($1,489)
9 out of the 10 poorest states rank among most wasteful
The other low-income states that top the list in unnecessary pharmacy-related costs include Kentucky, Tennessee, South Carolina, New Mexico and Oklahoma.
Our nation pays a huge price for bad medication-related decisions, and it is clear that the price is even more costly for those at the lowest end of the economic spectrum, said Steve Miller, MD, chief medical officer at Express Scripts. The good news is that our country can save billions of dollars for patients, employers and the government and achieve healthier outcomes simply by driving better decisions within the pharmacy benefit.