Statin by at least 50%, and recommend statins for patients who will not benefit, based on populations whose observed risk is lower than predicted by the guidelines. The European Society of Cardiology and the European Atherosclerosis Society recommend the use of statins for primary prevention, depending on baseline estimated cardiovascular score and LDL thresholds. Statins are effective in decreasing mortality in people with pre-existing cardiovascular disease. They are also advocated for use in people at high risk of developing coronary heart disease. On average, statins can lower LDL cholesterol by 1.8 mmol/l (70 mg/dl), which translates into an estimated 60% decrease
Specialty drugs in the United States are often defined as specialty because their price is much higher than that of non-specialty drugs. Medicare defines any drug for which the negotiated price is $670 per month or more, as a specialty drug which is placed in a specialty tier that requires a higher patient cost sharing. Drugs are also identified as specialty when there is a special handling requirement or the drug is only available via a limited distributions network. By 2015 "specialty medications accounted for one-third of all spending on drugs in the United States, up from 19 percent in 2004 and heading toward 50 percent