Carbidopa/Levodopa
Brand names: Crexont, Duopa, Sinemet, Carbidopa-Levodopa, Carbidopa-Levodopa Er, Dhivy, Rytary
At a glance
- Medicare prescriptions, 2024
- 3,240,454
- Medicare drug cost
- $339.8M
- Average cost per prescription
- $105
- Clinicians who prescribed it
- 40,828
Where it is prescribed
List the prescribers in any state, county, city or ZIP code →
What it is used for
Carbidopa and levodopa tablets are indicated in the treatment of Parkinson's disease, post-encephalitic parkinsonism, and symptomatic parkinsonism that may follow carbon monoxide intoxication or manganese intoxication. Carbidopa allows patients treated for Parkinson's disease to use much lower doses of levodopa. Some patients who responded poorly to levodopa have improved on carbidopa and levodopa tablets. This is most likely due to decreased peripheral decarboxylation of levodopa caused by administration of carbidopa rather than by a primary effect of carbidopa on the nervous system. Carbidopa has not been shown to enhance the intrinsic efficacy of levodopa. Carbidopa may also reduce nausea and vomiting and permit more rapid titration of levodopa.
From the FDA-approved prescribing information (label dated July 2025). Full labels on DailyMed (opens in a new tab)
Who prescribes it
- Neurology 51.9%
- Nurse Practitioners 13.7%
- Internal Medicine 12.4%
- Family Medicine 11.1%
- Physician Assistants 4.5%
- Geriatric Medicine 2.2%
- General Practice 0.8%
- Hospitalist 0.6%
- Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (PM&R) 0.4%
- Sleep Medicine 0.3%
- Child Neurology 0.2%
- Neurosurgery 0.2%
All prescribers, by place, name or specialty →
Share of Medicare prescriptions written by each specialty. Select one to list its prescribers.
Trend, 2019–2024
Medicare prescriptions rose 7% from 2019 to 2024.
Biggest change by state since 2019
- District of Columbia +36%
- Montana +32%
- Idaho +24%
- West Virginia +23%
- Delaware +21%
- Mississippi (smallest change) −12%
- Rhode Island (smallest change) −9%
From CMS’s yearly state and national Part D summaries, which count every prescriber, including those CMS leaves out of its per-clinician data (fewer than 11 prescriptions). That is why these totals are higher than the count at the top of this page. Prescriptions include refills.
What it looks like
Pills from 2 makers on file. The same medicine can look different depending on who made it, so check the imprint (the letters and numbers on the pill) with your pharmacist if a refill looks different.
American Health PAckaging
| Strength | Looks like | Imprint |
|---|---|---|
| 10 mg / 100 mg levodopa | blue round tablet, 8 mm | UPARROWHEAD 46 |
Trupharma, LLC
| Strength | Looks like | Imprint |
|---|---|---|
| 10 mg / 100 mg levodopa | blue round tablet, 8 mm | UPARROWHEAD 46 |
| 25 mg / 100 mg levodopa | yellow round tablet, 8 mm | UPARROWHEAD 47 |
| 25 mg / 250 mg levodopa | blue round tablet, 11 mm | UPARROWHEAD 49 |
Source: DailyMed (U.S. National Library of Medicine), from each maker’s FDA drug listing. A few makers are shown, not every one. Never take a pill you can’t identify; ask a pharmacist.
Industry payments about this drug
Drug makers reported $1.3M in payments to clinicians that named this drug in 2025 (meals, speaking, consulting and similar).
- Amneal Pharmaceuticals LLC $1.3M
- AbbVie Inc. $6,795
Source: CMS Open Payments, general payments (not research), program year 2025. A payment is not evidence of wrongdoing. Payments by doctor
Recalls and shortages
Not on the FDA drug shortage list.
No FDA-reported recalls since 2020.
Sources: CMS Medicare Part D Prescribers by Provider and Drug (2024; prescriptions include refills, and CMS hides counts under 11 per prescriber); U.S. Food and Drug Administration, openFDA (drug labels, NDC directory, enforcement reports, drug shortages); CMS Open Payments 2025; ClinicalTrials.gov. General information only, not medical advice; not yet reviewed by our medical reviewer.