Prednisone
Brand names: Prednisone, Prednisone Intensol, Rayos
At a glance
- Medicare prescriptions, 2024
- 14,006,188
- Medicare drug cost
- $63.8M
- Average cost per prescription
- $4.56
- Clinicians who prescribed it
- 295,258
Where it is prescribed
List the prescribers in any state, county, city or ZIP code →
What it is used for
PredniSONE Tablets are indicated in the following conditions: 1. Endocrine Disorders Primary or secondary adrenocortical insufficiency (hydrocortisone or cortisone is the first choice; synthetic analogs may be used in conjunction with mineralocorticoids where applicable; in infancy mineralocorticoid supplementation is of particular importance) Congenital adrenal hyperplasia Hypercalcemia associated with cancer Nonsuppurative thyroiditis 2. Rheumatic Disorders As adjunctive therapy for short-term administration (to tide the patient over an acute episode or exacerbation) in: Psoriatic arthritis Rheumatoid arthritis, including juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (selected cases may require low-dose maintenance therapy) Ankylosing spondylitis Acute and subacute bursitis Acute nonspecific tenosynovitis Acute gouty arthritis Post-traumatic osteoarthritis Synovitis of osteoarthritis Epicondylitis 3. Collagen Diseases During an exacerbation or as maintenance therapy in selected cases of: Systemic lupus erythematosus Systemic dermatomyositis (polymyositis) Acute rheumatic carditis 4. Dermatologic Diseases Pemphigus Bullous dermatitis herpetiformis Severe erythema multiforme (Stevens-Johnson syndrome) Exfoliative dermatitis Mycosis fungoides Severe psoriasis Severe seborrheic dermatitis 5. Allergic States Control of severe or incapacitating allergic conditions intractable to adequate trials…
From the FDA-approved prescribing information (label dated July 2026). Full labels on DailyMed (opens in a new tab)
Who prescribes it
- Nurse Practitioners 21.1%
- Family Medicine 18.6%
- Internal Medicine 14.4%
- Physician Assistants 10.4%
- Rheumatology 10.1%
- Pulmonology 6.1%
- Emergency Medicine 4.0%
- Hematology & Oncology 2.3%
- Nephrology (Kidney) 1.6%
- Hospitalist 1.2%
- ENT (Otolaryngology) 1.0%
- General Practice 0.9%
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 9% from 2019 to 2024.
Biggest change by state since 2019
- Utah +22%
- North Dakota +21%
- South Carolina +17%
- District of Columbia +16%
- Delaware +15%
- Oregon (smallest change) −3%
- Nebraska (smallest change) −1%
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 4 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.
Bryant Ranch Prepack
| Strength | Looks like | Imprint |
|---|---|---|
| 1 mg | white round tablet, 6 mm, scored to split in 2 | 5084 V |
Par Health USA, LLC
| Strength | Looks like | Imprint |
|---|---|---|
| 1 mg | white round tablet, 6 mm, scored to split in 2 | 5084 V |
| 2.5 mg | white round tablet, 6 mm, scored to split in 2 | 5085 V |
| 5 mg | white round tablet, 6 mm, scored to split in 2 | 5094 V |
| 10 mg | white round tablet, 9 mm, scored to split in 2 | 5093 V |
| 20 mg | orange round tablet, 10 mm, scored to split in 2 | 5092 V |
Pd-Rx Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
| Strength | Looks like | Imprint |
|---|---|---|
| 50 mg | white round tablet, 11 mm, scored to split in 2 | PI 50 |
Redpharm Drug
| Strength | Looks like | Imprint |
|---|---|---|
| 50 mg | white round tablet, 11 mm, scored to split in 2 | PI 50 |
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.
2 recalls since 2020
- Jul 2022 · Strides Pharma Inc. · Class II
Presence of foreign tablet: 2.5 mg tablet in a 20 mg bottle of Prednisone Tablets - Mar 2020 · Par Pharmaceutical Inc. · Class III
Labeling: Incorrect or Missing Exp Date - An incorrect expiration date has been identified on Prednisone Tablets USP 5 mg
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.