The study, released this week, found the type and frequency of prescription drugs consumers take depends partly on where they live. Data were based on medical claims made to Express Scripts, a St. Louis pharmacy benefit management company considered one of the country's largest drug management firms.

People in Utah, Maine and Oregon take more anti-depressants than the residents of any other state, while those in California, New York and New Jersey take the least, the study said.

Express Scripts senior researcher Brenda Motheral said the company looked at claims of 2 million Americans enrolled in commercial and managed-care health plans last year. The results include adults with jobs and their dependents, but not prescription drug users enrolled in government-sponsored programs such as Medicare or Medicaid.

Motheral said high anti-depressant use in rugged states with poor weather, short summers and lots of economic woes - such as Maine and Oregon - was not surprising. ''But with Utah, those (factors) didn't stick with us,'' she said. No further Express Scripts study is planned to find out why the state ranked so high.

The study found that in 45 states, about 5 percent of patients racked up half of all drug expenditures to insurers, company benefit plans or third-party administrators in health care.