Why is the comparison with Medicare for LOKELMA 5 GRAM POWDER PACKET 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 Lokelma / Sodium Zirconium Cyclosilicate: all makers, strengths, forms and routes combined, claim-weighted; gross cost incl. dispensing fees and patient pay, before rebates. Unit taken as NADAC's EA. Joined on brand name.

Why does this page start at 1 unit (EA)?

NADAC prices this product per EA, and the FDA NDC Directory lists 2 of its 3 NDCs (it does not list the other one) as dosage form “POWDER, FOR SUSPENSION” with route “ORAL”. Only a tablet, capsule, lozenge or troche with route “ORAL”, or a tablet or film with route “SUBLINGUAL” or “BUCCAL”, starts at 30, and none of these is one. NADAC’s EA for it may be a whole package (such as a kit, pen, syringe, vial or inhaler) or one dose inside it, and the files do not say which. So the card starts at 1 unit (EA) rather than guess how many make up a fill; change it to match your prescription.

LOKELMA 5 GRAM POWDER PACKET

FDA nonproprietary name: sodium zirconium cyclosilicate

For 1 unit (EA)

Pharmacies pay

$28.36 filed

1 × $28.36158 per EA

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

$26.66 filed

1 × $26.6574 per EA, 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

0.94× estimated

Medicare paid 6% less than pharmacies pay.

Part D averages every strength and form sold under “Lokelma” / “Sodium Zirconium Cyclosilicate” 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

$37.61 estimated

$28.36 + $4.25 (15%) + $5.00 fee per fill = $37.61

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

LOKELMA 5 GRAM POWDER PACKET is how the CMS NADAC file names this product. The FDA NDC Directory lists it as sodium zirconium cyclosilicate, under the trade name “LOKELMA”.

FDA gives its dosage form as powder, for suspension and its route as oral.

The labeler, the company named on the label, is AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP.

FDA lists no Established Pharmacologic Class for it.

The NADAC file of 2026-10-14 prices it under 3 NDCs (National Drug Codes); the FDA directory lists 2 of them.

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

What pharmacies pay

Pharmacies pay $28.36 for 1 unit (EA) (1 × $28.36158 per EA, 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 code for it: 1, calculated from the most recently completed pharmacy survey.

What NADAC measures · NADAC explanation codes

All 3 NDCs

00310-1105-01 · not listed as a package in the FDA directory · $28.36158 per EA · eff. 2026-09-23 filed
00310-1105-30 · AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP · $28.36158 per EA · eff. 2026-09-23 filed
00310-1105-39 · AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP · $28.36158 per EA · eff. 2026-09-23 filed

Other strengths, forms and brands

1 other product in the NADAC file shares the FDA nonproprietary name sodium zirconium cyclosilicate with LOKELMA 5 GRAM POWDER PACKET.

Product	Pharmacies pay per unit	Medicare per unit
LOKELMA 5 GRAM POWDER PACKET this page brand · powder, for suspension	$28.36158 per EA filed eff. 2026-09-23	$26.6574 per EA filed Part D 2024 average
LOKELMA 10 GRAM POWDER PACKET brand · powder, for suspension	$28.33002 per EA filed eff. 2026-09-23	$26.6574 per EA filed Part D 2024 average

Part D is one average per brand and generic name, over every strength and form.

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 · 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

What Medicare paid

Medicare Part D paid $26.66 for 1 unit (EA), at an average of $26.6574 per EA in 2024 (2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31) for “Lokelma” and “Sodium Zirconium Cyclosilicate”, every strength and form sold under that name together (Medicare Part D Spending by Drug, file of 2026-06-25).

That average covers 334,671 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 1 unit (EA)? Is it lower than what I would pay through my insurance?
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 LOKELMA 5 GRAM POWDER PACKET 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 Lokelma / Sodium Zirconium Cyclosilicate: all makers, strengths, forms and routes combined, claim-weighted; gross cost incl. dispensing fees and patient pay, before rebates. Unit taken as NADAC's EA. Joined on brand name.
Why does this page start at 1 unit (EA)?: NADAC prices this product per EA, and the FDA NDC Directory lists 2 of its 3 NDCs (it does not list the other one) as dosage form “POWDER, FOR SUSPENSION” with route “ORAL”. Only a tablet, capsule, lozenge or troche with route “ORAL”, or a tablet or film with route “SUBLINGUAL” or “BUCCAL”, starts at 30, and none of these is one. NADAC’s EA for it may be a whole package (such as a kit, pen, syringe, vial or inhaler) or one dose inside it, and the files do not say which. So the card starts at 1 unit (EA) rather than guess how many make up a fill; change it to match your prescription.