Specialty drugs boost prescription spending

Prescription drugs spending jumped 13 percent last year, the biggest annual increase since 2003, according to the nation's largest pharmacy benefits manager. Express Scripts Holding Co. said the jump was fueled in part by pricey specialty drugs that accounted for more than 31 cents of every dollar spent on prescriptions even though they represented only 1 percent of all U.S. prescriptions filled. Specialty drugs are advanced medications that treat complex or chronic conditions like multiple sclerosis or certain forms of cancer. Many are seen as treatment breakthroughs, especially newer hepatitis C treatments like Sovaldi from Gilead Sciences Inc.