Why is the comparison with Medicare for LITHIUM 8 MEQ/5 ML SOLUTION labelled estimated?

Beyond what the card shows, the records give these reasons: The Part D figure covers 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31; the NADAC price is from the file of 2026-10-14. Part D spending basis, as the Part D record states it: Part D 2024 average spend per dosage unit for Lithium Citrate / Lithium Citrate: all makers, strengths, forms and routes combined, claim-weighted; gross cost incl. dispensing fees and patient pay, before rebates. Unit taken as NADAC's ML. Joined on generic name.

Why does this page start at 500 mL?

NADAC prices this product per ML. The FDA NDC Directory’s package description gives 500 mL in one package for all 2 NDCs of this product (“500 mL in 1 BOTTLE (0121-1027-16)”), so the card starts at one package: 500 ML. Change it to match your prescription.

LITHIUM 8 MEQ/5 ML SOLUTION

For 500 mL

Pharmacies pay

$226.72 filed

500 × $0.45343 per ML

CMS NADAC · nadac-national-average-drug-acquisition-cost-20261014.csv · eff. 2026-09-23 · as of 2026-10-14 · retrieved 2026-10-17

Medicare Part D paid

$230.96 filed

500 × $0.46193 per ML, Part D average

Medicare's price is not your price.

Medicare Part D · DSD_PTD_RY26_P04_V10_DY24_BGM.csv · eff. 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · as of 2026-06-25 · retrieved 2026-10-18

The spread

1.0× estimated

Medicare paid about what pharmacies pay.

Part D averages every strength and form sold under “Lithium Citrate” into one figure, so it is not specific to this NDC.

OpenBill calculation · DSD_PTD_RY26_P04_V10_DY24_BGM.csv + nadac-national-average-drug-acquisition-cost-20261014.csv · NADAC eff. 2026-09-23 (file of 2026-10-14, retrieved 2026-10-17) · Part D 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 (file of 2026-06-25, retrieved 2026-10-18)

Cost-plus estimate

$265.73 estimated

$226.72 + $34.01 (15%) + $5.00 fee per fill = $265.73

This is a model, not a price any pharmacy quoted. Shipping is not included. How it is worked out

OpenBill calculation · nadac-national-average-drug-acquisition-cost-20261014.csv · NADAC eff. 2026-09-23 (file of 2026-10-14, retrieved 2026-10-17)

Open the interactive card Change the quantity, type what you were charged, and see every record in full.

What it is

LITHIUM 8 MEQ/5 ML SOLUTION is how the CMS NADAC file names this product. The FDA NDC Directory lists it as lithium.

FDA gives its dosage form as solution and its route as oral.

Its labelers, the companies named on the label, are PAI Holdings, LLC dba PAI Pharma and Advagen Pharma Ltd.

FDA’s Established Pharmacologic Class for it is Mood Stabilizer.

The NADAC file of 2026-10-14 prices it under 2 NDCs (National Drug Codes).

NADAC classes it as a generic drug (rate-setting class G), and does not mark it as sold over the counter.

What pharmacies pay

Pharmacies pay $226.72 for 500 mL (500 × $0.45343 per ML, rounded to the cent), by the CMS NADAC file of 2026-10-14; that price took effect on 2026-09-23. That is what pharmacies pay their suppliers, not what they charge you.

NADAC’s explanation codes for it: 1, calculated from the most recently completed pharmacy survey; 5, calculated based on package size.

What NADAC measures · NADAC explanation codes

All 2 NDCs

00121-1027-16 · PAI Holdings, LLC dba PAI Pharma · $0.45343 per ML · eff. 2026-09-23 filed
72888-0172-46 · Advagen Pharma Ltd · $0.45343 per ML · eff. 2026-09-23 filed

Compared with its class

The middle of its 2 NDCs’ NADAC prices is $0.45343 per ML filed.

Of the 4 other products in FDA’s Mood Stabilizer class priced per ML, 1 has a higher middle NADAC price and 3 a lower one. The one in the middle is CARBAMAZEPINE 100 MG/5 ML SUSP, at $0.09255 per ML filed (eff. 2026-09-23).

Prices are compared per unit, whatever the strength or dose, and a class is not a list of substitutes.

CMS NADAC · nadac-national-average-drug-acquisition-cost-20261014.csv · eff. 2026-09-23 · as of 2026-10-14 · retrieved 2026-10-17

How the class comparison works

What Medicare paid

Medicare Part D paid $230.96 for 500 mL, at an average of $0.46193 per ML in 2024 (2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31) for “Lithium Citrate”, every strength and form sold under that name together (Medicare Part D Spending by Drug, file of 2026-06-25).

That average covers 1,009 Part D claims (fills, including refills) for 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31, across every maker, strength and form under the name.

Medicare's price is not your price.

What Part D spending measures · Which Medicare figure OpenBill compares · How the spread is worked out

What to ask at the counter

None of these figures is your price: what you pay depends on your pharmacy, your insurance, coupons and discounts.

What is your cash price for 500 mL? Is it lower than what I would pay through my insurance?
How much is in the package I am getting? This page uses 500 mL; your package may hold a different amount.
If you have Medicare Part D: what is my plan’s copay or coinsurance for it? The Part D average on this page is not what you pay.
These are questions about price, not medical advice. Do not change or stop a medicine without talking to your prescriber or pharmacist.

Questions

Why is the comparison with Medicare for LITHIUM 8 MEQ/5 ML SOLUTION labelled estimated?: Beyond what the card shows, the records give these reasons: The Part D figure covers 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31; the NADAC price is from the file of 2026-10-14. Part D spending basis, as the Part D record states it: Part D 2024 average spend per dosage unit for Lithium Citrate / Lithium Citrate: all makers, strengths, forms and routes combined, claim-weighted; gross cost incl. dispensing fees and patient pay, before rebates. Unit taken as NADAC's ML. Joined on generic name.
Why does this page start at 500 mL?: NADAC prices this product per ML. The FDA NDC Directory’s package description gives 500 mL in one package for all 2 NDCs of this product (“500 mL in 1 BOTTLE (0121-1027-16)”), so the card starts at one package: 500 ML. Change it to match your prescription.

Its pharmacologic class

Mood Stabilizer 78 products