Hydrocodone/Acetaminophen
Brand names: Hydrocodone-Acetaminophen
Part of: Opioid painkillers
At a glance
- Medicare prescriptions, 2024
- 18,872,497
- Medicare drug cost
- $373.3M
- Average cost per prescription
- $19.78
- Clinicians who prescribed it
- 223,227
Where it is prescribed
List the prescribers in any state, county, city or ZIP code →
What it is used for
Hydrocodone bitartrate and homatropine methylbromide is indicated for the symptomatic relief of cough in adult patients 18 years of age and older. Limitations of Use: Not indicated for pediatric patients under 18 years of age. Contraindicated in pediatric patients less than 6 years of age. Because of the risks of addiction, abuse, misuse, overdose, and death, which can occur at any dosage or duration, and persist over the course of therapy, reserve hydrocodone bitartrate and homatropine methylbromide for use in adult patients for whom alternative treatment options are ineffective, not tolerated, or would be otherwise inadequate to provide sufficient management of cough.
From the FDA-approved prescribing information (label dated August 2026). Full labels on DailyMed (opens in a new tab)
Boxed warning
WARNING: ADDICTION, ABUSE, AND MISUSE; LIFE-THREATENING RESPIRATORY DEPRESSION; ACCIDENTAL INGESTION; MEDICATION ERRORS; CYTOCHROME P450 3A4 INTERACTION; CONCOMITANT USE WITH BENZODIAZEPINES OR OTHER CNS DEPRESSANTS; INTERACTION WITH ALCOHOL; NEONATAL OPIOID WITHDRAWAL SYNDROME Addiction, Abuse, and Misuse Hydrocodone bitartrate and homatropine methylbromide exposes patients and other users to the risks of opioid addiction, abuse, and misuse, which can l ead to overdose and death. Reserve hydrocodone bitartrate and homatropine methylbromide for use in adult patients for whom the benefits of cough suppression are expected to outweigh the risks, and in whom an adequate assessment of the etiology of the cough has been made. Assess each patient’s risk prior to prescribing hydrocodone bitartrate and homatropine methylbromide, prescribe hydrocodone bitartrate and homatropine methylbromide for…
The FDA’s strongest warning on a label. It doesn’t mean the drug is unsafe for most people; talk to your doctor or pharmacist before stopping or changing any medicine.
Who prescribes it
- Family Medicine 22.3%
- Nurse Practitioners 16.9%
- Pain Medicine 14.2%
- Internal Medicine 13.3%
- Physician Assistants 9.3%
- Orthopedic Surgery 2.9%
- Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (PM&R) 2.6%
- Emergency Medicine 2.5%
- Dentists (general) 1.6%
- Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeons 1.6%
- Anesthesiology 1.4%
- General Surgery 1.1%
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 fell 12% from 2019 to 2024.
Biggest change by state since 2019
- Delaware +11%
- Arkansas +3%
- Wyoming +3%
- North Dakota +1%
- Texas −0%
- District of Columbia (smallest change) −30%
- Massachusetts (smallest change) −28%
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 1 maker 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.
Kvk-Tech, Inc.
| Strength | Looks like | Imprint |
|---|---|---|
| 5 mg / 1.5 mg homatropine methylbromide | white round tablet, 8 mm, scored to split in 2 | K 55 |
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
No industry payments to clinicians named this drug in 2025.
Recalls and shortages
Not on the FDA drug shortage list.
1 recall since 2020
- Apr 2021 · Kvk-Tech, Inc. · Class III
Failed Impurities/Degradation Specifications
Recalls usually affect specific lots from one maker, not every version of a drug. Class I is the most serious; most drug recalls are Class II. FDA recalls (opens in a new tab)
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.