Medical Expenditure Panel Survey 

Agency for Healthcare 

Research and Quality

STATISTICAL BRIEF #206 

June 2008 

Highlights 

 In 2002, there were 154.1 

million antidepressant 

prescription purchases in 

the U.S. civilian 

noninstitutionalized 

population, and by 2005, 

rose to 169.9 million 

antidepressant purchases. 

 During 2005, the highest 

percentage of 

antidepressant 

prescriptions written during 

office based and outpatient 

visits where a medical 

doctor spoke with the 

patient were written by 

psychiatrists (29.3 

percent). 

 In 2005, the top four 

specialties of doctors 

writing antidepressant 

prescriptions during 

outpatient and office based 

visits where a medical 

doctor spoke with the 

patient were psychiatry 

(29.3 percent), general 

practice (22.6 percent), 

family practice (20.5 

percent), and internal 

medicine (10.0 percent). 

 When comparing 2002 and 

2005, medical doctors with 

a specialty in psychiatry 

prescribed a higher 

percentage of 

antidepressant 

prescriptions during office 

based and outpatient visits 

where a medical doctor 

spoke with the patient in 

2002 (33.6 percent) than in 

2005 (29.3 percent). 

Antidepressants Prescribed by Medical 

Doctors in Office Based and Outpatient 

Settings by Specialty for the U.S. 

Civilian Noninstitutionalized 

Population, 2002 and 2005 

Marie N. Stagnitti, MPA 

Introduction 

This Statistical Brief provides information as reported by households 

in the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population on total utilization 

of outpatient antidepressant prescription medicines in 2002 and 

2005. The brief also provides, by medical doctor specialty, estimates 

as reported by households on the percentage of prescriptions (not 

including refills) of antidepressants prescribed during office based 

and outpatient visits where a medical doctor spoke with the patient 

either in person or over the telephone for the years 2002 and 2005. 

The estimates in this brief are derived from the Household 

Component of the 2002 and 2005 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey 

(MEPS-HC). In the MEPS-HC, the medical doctor specialty question 

was only asked in regards to office based and outpatient visits where 

a medical doctor either saw and spoke to the patient in person, or 

spoke to the patient over the telephone. Consequently, to obtain the 

medical doctor specialty percentages, the data were subcategorized 

to prescriptions (not including refills) of antidepressant prescribed 

medication purchases that were mentioned in relation to office based 

and outpatient visits where a medical doctor spoke with the patient. 

However, in MEPS, a respondent can report speaking with more 

than one doctor per visit, and can also report a prescribed medicine 

in relation to one or more outpatient or office based medical events. 

If more than one type of doctor specialty was reported in these 

examples, each specialty was included in the estimates. 

Only prescribed medicine purchases in an outpatient setting are 

included in the MEPS-HC estimates. Prescription medicines 

administered in an inpatient setting or in a clinic or medical doctor’s 

office are excluded from these estimates. 

Antidepressant classification was assigned to MEPS prescribed 

medicines using Multum Lexicon variables from Cerner Multum, Inc. 

All differences discussed in the text are statistically significant at the 

0.05 level. 

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2

Findings 

In 2002, there were 154.1 million household reported purchases for antidepressant outpatient prescription 

medicine in the U.S. community population, and by 2005, that number rose to 169.9 million prescriptions 

(figure 1). 

In 2005, 53.0 million antidepressant prescriptions were prescribed during visits where a medical doctor 

spoke with the patient. The top four household reported medical doctor specialties included the following: 

psychiatry (29.3 percent), general practice (22.6 percent), family practice (20.5 percent), and internal 

medicine (10.0 percent) (figure 2). 

Of the antidepressants prescribed by medical doctors in office based and outpatient settings, where a 

medical doctor spoke with the patient in 2005, the percentage written by doctors with a specialty in 

psychiatry was about 30 percent (29.3 percent) and was higher than the percentage prescribed by the 

remaining specialties in the top four (general practice, 22.6 percent; family practice, 20.5 percent; and 

internal medicine, 10.0 percent). There was no difference in the percentage of antidepressants prescribed 

by physicians with specialties in general practice or family practice (22.6 percent and 20.5 percent, 

respectively), and those specialties prescribed a higher percentage of antidepressants than those medical 

doctors with a specialty in internal medicine (10.0 percent) (figure 2). 

When comparing 2002 and 2005, the percentage of the antidepressants prescribed by medical doctors 

with a specialty in psychiatry in office based and outpatient settings where a medical doctor spoke with 

the patient decreased from 33.6 percent to 29.3 percent. The percentages for all other specialties in the 

top four that prescribed antidepressants remained stable when 2002 was compared with 2005 (general 

practice, 22.7 percent versus 22.6 percent; family practice, 17.7 percent versus 20.5 percent; and internal 

medicine 10.8 versus 10.0 percent) (figure 2). 

Data Source 

The data sources used were MEPS HC-067A: 2002 Prescribed Medicines File, MEPS HC-070: 2002 Full 

Year Consolidated Data File, MEPS HC-094A: 2005 Prescribed Medicines File, and MEPS HC-097: 2005 

Full Year Consolidated Data File. 

Definitions/Methodology 

Therapeutic Classifications 

The antidepressant classification assigned to MEPS prescribed medicines using Multum Lexicon 

variables from Cerner Multum, Inc., MEPS prescribed medicines files were linked to the Multum Lexicon 

database to obtain therapeutic class and subclass variables. All antidepressants in MEPS were defined 

as those events assigned the therapeutic subclass (TC1S1=249) in the Multum Lexicon database. For 

additional information on these and other Multum Lexicon variables, as well as the Multum Lexicon 

database itself, please refer to the following Web site: http://www.multum.com/Lexicon.htm. 

Medical Doctor Specialty 

MEPS prescribed drug data were categorized to all outpatient prescribed antidepressant medications 

purchased by the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population. To obtain the specialty of doctor data, the 

data were further subcategorized to only those antidepressant prescribed medications that were reported 

by household respondents as prescribed during office based or outpatient visits where a medical doctor 

spoke with the patient. In MEPS, the medical doctor specialty question is asked only for office based or 

outpatient visits where a medical doctor spoke with the patient. Speaking with a medical doctor includes 

seeing and speaking to a medical doctor during a visit or speaking to a medical doctor over the 

telephone. 

In MEPS, a respondent is able to report seeing more than one doctor per visit and a respondent can also 

report a prescribed medicine in regards to one or more outpatient or office based medical event. When 

these situations occurred and more than one doctor specialty was reported, each specialty was included 

in the estimates. 
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Utilization 

Utilization was defined as one or more household reported purchases of a prescribed antidepressant. 

Refills as well as original prescriptions are included in the total utilization counts. However, in the 

physician specialty estimates refills are not included. 

About MEPS-HC 

MEPS-HC is a nationally representative longitudinal survey that collects detailed information on health 

care utilization and expenditures, health insurance, and health status, as well as a wide variety of social, 

demographic, and economic characteristics for the civilian noninstitutionalized population. It is 

cosponsored by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the National Center for Health 

Statistics. 

For more information about MEPS, call the MEPS information coordinator at AHRQ (301-427-1656) or 

visit the MEPS Web site at http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/. 

References 

For a detailed description of the MEPS-HC survey design, sample design, and methods used to minimize 

sources of nonsampling error, see the following publications: 

Cohen, J. Design and Methods of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Household Component. MEPS 

Methodology Report No. 1. AHCPR Pub. No. 97-0026. Rockville, MD: Agency for Health Care Policy and 

Research, 1997. http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/mepsweb/data_files/publications/mr1/mr1.shtml 

Cohen, S. Sample Design of the 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Household Component. MEPS 

Methodology Report No. 2. AHCPR Pub. No. 97-0027. Rockville, MD: Agency for Health Care Policy and 

Research, 1997. http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/mepsweb/data_files/publications/mr2/mr2.shtml 

Cohen, S. Design Strategies and Innovations in the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. Medical Care, 

July 2003: 41(7) Supplement: III-5–III-12. 

Ezzati-Rice, TM, Rohde, F, Greenblatt, J, Sample Design of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey 

Household Component, 1998–2007. Methodology Report No. 22. March 2008. Agency for Healthcare 

Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. 

http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/mepsweb/data_files/publications/mr22/mr22.pdf 

Suggested Citation 

Stagnitti, M. N. Antidepressants Prescribed By Medical Doctors in Office Based and Outpatient Settings 

by Specialty for the U.S. Civilian Noninstitutionalized Population, 2002 and 2005. Statistical Brief #206. 

June 2008. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. 

http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/mepsweb/data_files/publications/st206/stat206.pdf 

* * * 

AHRQ welcomes questions and comments from readers of this publication who are interested in 

obtaining more information about access, cost, use, financing, and quality of health care in the United 

States. We also invite you to tell us how you are using this Statistical Brief and other MEPS data and 

tools and to share suggestions on how MEPS products might be enhanced to further meet your needs. 

Please e-mail us at mepspd@ahrq.gov or send a letter to the address below: 

Steven B. Cohen, PhD, Director 

Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends 

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality 

540 Gaither Road 

Rockville, MD 20850 
Source: Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends, AHRQ, Household Component of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey,

2002 and 2005.

154.1

169.9

0

50

100

150

200

2002 2005

Prescriptio

ns in millions

Figure 1. Total utilization of antidepressant 

outpatient prescription medicines in the U.S. civilian

noninstitutionalized population, 2002 and 2005 

Source: Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends, AHRQ, Household Component of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey,

2002 and 2005.

33.6

22.7

17.7

10.8 10.0

20.5 22.6

29.3

0

25

50

75

100

Psychiatry General practice Family practice Internal medicine

2002 2005

Percentage

Figure 2. Top four physician specialties prescribing 

antidepressants during office based and outpatient visits 

where a medical doctor spoke with the patient, 2002 and 2005

Statistical Brief #206: Antidepressants Prescribed by Medical Doctors in Office Based and Outpatient 

Settings by Specialty for the U.S. Civilian Noninstitutionalized Population, 2002 and 2005 

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