PULMICORT 0.5 MG/2 ML RESPULE
FDA nonproprietary name: budesonide
For 60 mL
Pharmacies pay
$294.67 filed
60 × $4.9112 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
$331.82 filed
60 × $5.53027 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
1.1× estimated
Medicare paid 1.1× what pharmacies pay.
Part D averages every strength and form sold under “Pulmicort” / “Budesonide” 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
$343.87 estimated
$294.67 + $44.20 (15%) + $5.00 fee per fill = $343.87
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
PULMICORT 0.5 MG/2 ML RESPULE is how the CMS NADAC file names this product. The FDA NDC Directory lists it as budesonide, under the trade name “PULMICORT RESPULES”.
FDA gives its dosage form as suspension and its route as respiratory (inhalation).
The labeler, the company named on the label, is AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP.
FDA’s Established Pharmacologic Class for it is Corticosteroid.
The NADAC file of 2026-10-14 prices it under one NDC (National Drug Code), 00186-1989-04.
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 $294.67 for 60 mL (60 × $4.9112 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.
NADAC also lists, on the row of one brand NDC, what pharmacies pay for the generic equivalent, a different product: $0.67608 per ML filed.
CMS NADAC · nadac-national-average-drug-acquisition-cost-20261014.csv · eff. 2026-09-23 · as of 2026-10-14 · retrieved 2026-10-17
What NADAC measures · NADAC explanation codes
The NDC
- 00186-1989-04 · AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP · $4.9112 per ML · eff. 2026-09-23 filed
Other strengths, forms and brands
12 other products in the NADAC file share the FDA nonproprietary name budesonide with PULMICORT 0.5 MG/2 ML RESPULE.
| Product | Pharmacies pay per unit | Medicare per unit |
|---|---|---|
| BUDESONIDE 0.25 MG/2 ML SUSP | $0.6974 per ML filed | $2.29303 per ML filed |
| BUDESONIDE 0.5 MG/2 ML SUSP | $0.67608 per ML filed | $2.29303 per ML filed |
| BUDESONIDE 1 MG/2 ML INH SUSP | $3.42737 per ML filed | $2.29303 per ML filed |
| BUDESONIDE 2 MG RECTAL FOAM | $9.56406 per GM filed | We don’t know yet |
| BUDESONIDE 32 MCG NASAL SPRAY | $1.41168 per ML filed | We don’t know yet |
| BUDESONIDE DR 3 MG CAPSULE | $0.49753 per EA filed | $1.28354 per EA filed |
| BUDESONIDE EC 3 MG CAPSULE | $0.49753 per EA filed | $1.95114 per EA filed |
| BUDESONIDE ER 9 MG TABLET | $15.54905 per EA filed | $12.69315 per EA filed |
| EOHILIA 2 MG/10 ML PACKET | $3.28718 per ML filed | $3.03401 per ML filed |
| PULMICORT 0.5 MG/2 ML RESPULE this page | $4.9112 per ML filed | $5.53027 per ML filed |
| PULMICORT 1 MG/2 ML RESPULE | $9.8448 per ML filed | $5.53027 per ML filed |
| PULMICORT 90 MCG FLEXHALER | $188.51627 per EA filed | We don’t know yet |
| PULMICORT 180 MCG FLEXHALER | $253.49738 per EA filed | We don’t know yet |
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. between 2026-01-21 and 2026-09-23 (4 dates) · 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
Compared with its class
Its NADAC price is $4.9112 per ML filed.
Of the 106 other products in FDA’s Corticosteroid class priced per ML, 39 have a higher middle NADAC price and 67 a lower one. The one in the middle is FLUNISOLIDE 0.025% SPRAY, at $1.98777 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
What Medicare paid
Medicare Part D paid $331.82 for 60 mL, at an average of $5.53027 per ML in 2024 (2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31) for “Pulmicort” and “Budesonide”, every strength and form sold under that name together (Medicare Part D Spending by Drug, file of 2026-06-25).
That average covers 638 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 60 mL? Is it lower than what I would pay through my insurance?
- How much is in the package I am getting? This page uses 60 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 PULMICORT 0.5 MG/2 ML RESPULE 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 Pulmicort / Budesonide: 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 brand name.
- Why does this page start at 60 mL?
- NADAC prices this product per ML. The FDA NDC Directory’s package description gives 60 mL in one package for this product’s NDC (“6 POUCH in 1 CARTON (0186-1989-04) / 5 AMPULE in 1 POUCH / 2 mL in 1 AMPULE”), so the card starts at one package: 60 ML. Change it to match your prescription.
Related pages
Its pharmacologic class
Related in the same class
- PREDNISONE 1 MG TABLET
- TRELEGY ELLIPTA 100-62.5-25
- METHYLPREDNISOLONE 16 MG TAB
- PREDNISOLONE AC 1% EYE DROP
- BREO ELLIPTA 100-25 MCG INHALR