Zaleplon
Brand names: Zaleplon
At a glance
- Medicare prescriptions, 2024
- 86,704
- Medicare drug cost
- $1.8M
- Average cost per prescription
- $20.22
- Clinicians who prescribed it
- 4,537
Where it is prescribed
List the prescribers in any state, county, city or ZIP code →
What it is used for
Zaleplon capsules are indicated for the short-term treatment of insomnia. Zaleplon capsules have been shown to decrease the time to sleep onset for up to 30 days in controlled clinical studies (see Clinical Trials under CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY ). They have not been shown to increase total sleep time or decrease the number of awakenings. The clinical trials performed in support of efficacy ranged from a single night to 5 weeks in duration. The final formal assessments of sleep latency were performed at the end of treatment.
From the FDA-approved prescribing information (label dated May 2024). Full labels on DailyMed (opens in a new tab)
Boxed warning
WARNING: COMPLEX SLEEP BEHAVIORS Complex sleep behaviors including sleep-walking, sleep-driving, and engaging in other activities while not fully awake may occur following use of zaleplon. Some of these events may result in serious injuries, including death. Discontinue zaleplon immediately if a patient experiences a complex sleep behavior (see CONTRAINDICATIONS and Complex Sleep Behaviors under WARNINGS ).
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
- Psychiatry 23.1%
- Family Medicine 19.0%
- Internal Medicine 18.1%
- Nurse Practitioners 10.4%
- Psychiatric Nurse Practitioners 8.7%
- Physician Assistants 4.8%
- Sleep Medicine 3.8%
- Neurology 3.2%
- Pulmonology 2.7%
- Child & Adolescent Psychiatry 0.8%
- Pain Medicine 0.7%
- Rheumatology 0.6%
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 4% from 2019 to 2024.
Biggest change by state since 2019
- Tennessee +13%
- Ohio +13%
- North Carolina +13%
- Texas +12%
- Florida +10%
- New Jersey (smallest change) −16%
- California (smallest change) −7%
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 3 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.
Pd-Rx Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
| Strength | Looks like | Imprint |
|---|---|---|
| 5 mg | green capsule, 14 mm | E19 5 MG |
Preferred Pharmaceuticals Inc.
| Strength | Looks like | Imprint |
|---|---|---|
| 10 mg | blue capsule, 15 mm | U 132 |
Rising Pharma Holdings, Inc.
| Strength | Looks like | Imprint |
|---|---|---|
| 5 mg | green capsule, 14 mm | E19 5 MG |
| 10 mg | green capsule, 14 mm | E20 10 MG |
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.
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.