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Live data · NADAC + Part D CY24 · reviewed daily

Hydromorphone (Dilaudid)

Hydromorphone relieves moderate to severe pain by acting on opioid receptors in the brain.

First FDA approval1972-01-01
Generic availableYes · 8 mfrs
Shortage statusActive shortage
340B exposureunknown
Last updated
NADAC: weekly (every Wed)Part D Formulary: quarterlyPart D Spend: annual (CY24)Orange Book: weeklyShortages: daily
At a glance · the numbers a plan sponsor wants on screen one

$28.7M in CY2024 Part D spend1.2M claims · 345K beneficiaries · 329 plans surveyed

Lowest NADAC
$0.166/unit
20 NDCs benchmarked, lowest of all strengths.
Average NADAC
$0.484
Across all dosage forms in distribution.
Highest NADAC
$2.52
Wide spread — brand-strength NDCs still in market.
Plans with PA
164 / 329
Limited PA friction.

Questions a plan sponsor actually asks.

FAQPage schema12 entries indexed · 4 visible
What is Hydromorphone used for?

Hydromorphone relieves moderate to severe pain by acting on opioid receptors in the brain.

Is there a generic for Hydromorphone?

Yes. 32 ANDAs filed at FDA, 8 generic manufacturers currently shipping.

How much does my plan pay for Hydromorphone?

Across 329 Part D plans, Hydromorphone averages $0.484/unit (NADAC). Lowest available: $0.166/unit. Highest in distribution: $2.52/unit.

Is Hydromorphone on the FDA shortage list?

Yes. Hydromorphone is currently listed as an active FDA shortage.

8 additional drug-specific questions are indexed in the page's FAQPage schema for search engines and LLM crawlers, beyond what renders visually above. View page source for the complete JSON-LD.

Same class. Different math.

Opioid Agonist6 alternatives in D1
01
Fentanyl
Brand: Fentanyl system
$1.24Lowest NADAC
5Generic mfrs
$139.6MCY24 Part D spend
Compare →
02
Fentanyl Transdermal
Opioid Agonist
$5.69Lowest NADAC
0Generic mfrs
CY24 Part D spend
Compare →
03
Hydrocodone Bitartrate and Homatropine Methylbromide
Brand: Hycodan
$0.098Lowest NADAC
6Generic mfrs
CY24 Part D spend
Compare →
04
Hydrocodone and Apap
Brand: Norco
Lowest NADAC
0Generic mfrs
CY24 Part D spend
Compare →
05
Levorphanol
Opioid Agonist
$10.65Lowest NADAC
5Generic mfrs
$20.6MCY24 Part D spend
Compare →
06
Loperamide
Opioid Agonist
$0.053Lowest NADAC
8Generic mfrs
$24.5MCY24 Part D spend
Compare →

Sources · every number above traces back.

Last refresh30 May 2026

Drug identity, dosage forms, brand names: openFDA NDC Directory · First approval, ANDA history: FDA Orange Book (10 approvals on file) · NADAC unit costs: CMS NADAC weekly file (20 NDCs benchmarked) · Formulary tier and PA placement: CMS Part D Formulary file (329 plans) · Annualized spend, claims, beneficiaries: CMS Part D Spending Dashboard (CY2024) · Shortage status: FDA Drug Shortage Database · 340B exposure: HRSA OPAIS. Methodology and reproducibility notes on /methodology.