Healthcare Insights

Top 25 drugs used in outpatient procedures

There is a growing emphasis on outpatient care in the United States. Outpatient care facilities play an important role in reducing healthcare costs while also satisfying patient desires for convenient, quality care.

Outpatient care is especially important for coordinating care for patients with chronic conditions since their conditions can require frequent doctor visits.

In this Healthcare Insight, we use Definitive Healthcare ClaimsMx data from PhysicianGroupView to review ambulatory medications administered during outpatient visits from January to August 2022. We filtered our data by the chemotherapy and drugs not administered orally Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) sub-categories, which include infused and injected medications that are billed as a procedure.

Top medication administration procedures

Explore dataset

Rank	HCPCS code	HCPCS description	Percent of outpatient encounters	Explore dataset
1	J3301	Triamcinolone acetonide, injection, 10mg	12.30%	Explore
2	J1100	Dexamethasone sodium phosphate, injection, 1mg	8.10%	Explore
3	J3420	Vitamin B-12 injection, 1000mcg	4.20%	Explore
4	J1885	Ketorolac tromethamine, injection, 15mg	3.80%	Explore
5	J0178	Alfibercept, injection, 1mg	3.70%	Explore
6	J0702	Betamethasone acetate and betamethasone sodium phosphate, injection, 3 mg	3.40%	Explore
7	J0696	Ceftriaxone sodium, injection, 250mg	3.20%	Explore
8	J1030	Methylprednisolone acetate, injection, 40mg	3.20%	Explore
9	J9035	Bevacizumab, injection, 10mg	2.90%	Explore
10	J3490	Unclassified drugs, injection	2.40%	Explore
11	J1071	Testosterone cypionate, injection, 1mg	2.20%	Explore
12	J1040	Methylprednisolone acetate, injection, 80mg	2.10%	Explore
13	J1050	Medroxyprogesterone acetate, injection, 1mg	1.70%	Explore
14	J1200	Diphenhydramine HCL, injection, 50mg	1.60%	Explore
15	J2785	Regadenoson, injection, 0.1mg	1.60%	Explore
16	J0585	OnabotulinumtoxinA, injection, 1 unit	1.50%	Explore
17	J7030	Normal saline solution, infusion, 1000cc	1.40%	Explore
18	J7050	Normal saline solution, infusion, 250cc	1.10%	Explore
19	J2405	Ondansetron hydrochloride, per 1mg	1.10%	Explore
20	J0897	Denosumab, injection, 1mg	1.10%	Explore
21	J2469	Palonosetron HCL, injection, 25mcg	1.00%	Explore
22	J1756	Iron sucrose, injection, 1mg	1.00%	Explore
23	J2930	Methylprednisolone sodium succinate, injection, 125mg	0.90%	Explore
24	J2778	Ranibizumab, injection, 0.1mg	0.80%	Explore
25	J2357	Omalizumab, injection, 5mg	0.80%	Explore

Fig. 1 Data is from the Definitive Healthcare ClaimsMx and PhysicianGroupView products from January to August 2022. Claims data is sourced from multiple medical claims clearinghouses in the United States and is updated monthly. Data accessed September 2022.

What are the most common injected or infused medications?

Triamcinolone acetonide (J3301) and dexamethasone sodium phosphate (J1100) account for nearly one-quarter of chemotherapy and injection/infusion medications on the list. Both are used to treat arthritis, a common inflammatory condition.

Vitamin B injections (J3420) for deficiencies of the vitamin, ketorolac tromethamine (J1885) for pain management, and aflibercept (J0178) for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) complete the top five drugs used in outpatient procedures list.

What conditions do injected and infused medication treat?

Additional conditions treated by medications on the list include:

Allergies
Autoimmune diseases, such as lupus
Bacterial infections
Cancer
Osteoporosis

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