Representatives from the top pharmacy benefit managers looked to shift blame off itself for high drug prices onto pharmaceutical companies during a Senate Finance Committee hearing on Tuesday, CNBC reports. Five executives representing CVS Health, Cigna, Prime Therapeutics, Human and […]
Sweetenham Spotlights Possible Benefits, Problems with RWE in Oncology
John Sweetenham, senior director of clinical affairs and executive medical director of Huntsman Cancer Institute at The University of Utah, in a recent write up takes a look at some of the potential benefits real-world evidence (RWE) has to offer in oncology, as well as some of the possible […]
Broadcasting, Advertising Groups Oppose Rule on Drug Prices in Ads
Bringing a new swath of opposition to the Trump administration's rule requiring drugmakers to include drug prices in their commercials, broadcasting and advertising groups say the rules could put a significant dent in a key revenue stream, The Hill reports. The Association of National Advertisers […]
Hospitals, Insurers Eye Drug Rebate Rule
Insurers and hospitals say the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) should include in a recently-proposed rule some new requirements for pharmaceutical companies, Modern Healthcare reports. Organizations in response to the rule suggested that eliminating safe harbor for Medicare Part D […]
TEDMED 2020 Slated to Kick Off March 2
TEDMED 2020 is set for March 2-4 in Boston, the TEDMED team announced this week, with early-bird registration slated to open May 15. TEDMED in an email said it was "excited to bring our diverse, multi-disciplinary community Boston." "TEDMED is dedicated to inspiring change in health and medicine, […]
ICER Releases Report on Peanut Allergy Treatments
The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review on Tuesday, April 9, released a draft evidence report on the clinical effectiveness and value of DBV Technologies' Viaskin Peanut and Aimmune Therapeutics' AR101 for inducing immune tolerance to peanuts. The report will be open to public comment until […]
PBMs Testify Before Senate Finance Committee
Pharmacy benefit managers mostly dodged questions from policymakers during a Senate Finance Committee hearing Tuesday, STAT reports. However, Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) floated the possibility of legislative action. "Ranking member Wyden and I are committed to working on […]
Survey Finds Big Push to Bolster Data Analytics Strategies
Health care organizations are looking to ramp up their efforts to develop big data analytics solutions to tackle the logistics of value-based health care, a new survey from Deloitte Center for Health Solutions suggests. The survey found that 70 percent of health organizations have developed a […]
Report: Competition High for Data Scientists
A new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association suggests providers, payers and health IT vendors are heavily competing for experienced data scientists. According to a HealthITAnalytics report, the analysis found stiff competition for experts familiar with common […]
Policymakers Move on Drug Pricing Bill
House legislators are moving forward with legislation aimed at reducing drug prices after House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone Jr., a Democrat, and Republican Rep. Greg Walden reached a bipartisan deal, The Hill reports. The bill was expected to advance out of committee […]
AMCP Seeks Comments on Framework
The Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) is seeking stakeholder input as it works to update its "Format for Formulary Submissions" framework. The deadline to submit feedback is Thursday, April 11. AMCP says it's updating the framework to align with the Food and Drug Administration's […]
CTI Announces Expansion of Two Offices
CTI Clinical Trial and Consulting Services (CTI) on Wednesday, April 3, announced plans to expand its offices in Raleigh, North Carolina, and San Francisco, California. According to a press release, CTI's North Carolina expansion will double its current size to "accommodate immediate and future […]
ICER Recommends Major Price Drop for Spinraza
The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) announced the release of its final report on Spinraza and Zolgensma for treatment of spinal muscular atrophy, and in it recommended a major price reduction for Spinraza. No recommendation was made on Zolgensma's price since its treatment price […]
Rep. Welch Looks to Create Partnership Vs. High Drug Prices
Democratic Rep. Peter Welch is looking to a build a bipartisan coalition in a bid to combat high drug prices, STAT reports, and has already been in contact with Republican Rep. Mark Meadows. Welch tells STAT he recently had breakfast with Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, Domestic […]
Cigna, Express Scripts Announce Program to Cap Insulin Costs
Insurance giant Cigna and its PBM arm, Express Scripts, recently announced a new program aimed at cutting the cost of insulin for a number of patients, STAT reports. However, per the report, the reduced prices will not reach every consumer with Cigna as their insurer or Express Scripts as their […]
Less Than 2 Years Later, Gottlieb Signs Off
After serving less than two years in the post, Scott Gottlieb officially exited his post as the Food and Drug Administration's commissioner Tuesday, April 2, handing over the reins to interim chief Ned Sharpless. Gottlieb during his final days as commissioner, according to a PMLiVE report, touched […]
IQVIA’s Long Talks Health Care Trends
IQVIA Industry Relations Vice President Douglas Long took center stage during a session at the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy's (AMCP) 2019 meeting to discuss current trends in the health care industry. Long discussed a number of key market trends, according to an AMCP report, including […]
AMCP 2019 Session Spotlights Disruptors, Innovators
A group of speakers during the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy's (AMCP) 2019 meeting in San Diego, California, focused on how innovative and disruptive organizations could alter the health care landscape moving forward. The speakers were Precision for Value's Jorge Font, senior vice president, and […]
Ali Talks CAR-T Outcomes-Based Contracts
The Journal of Clinical Pathways (JCP) recently discussed the clinical and pharmacy burden of outcomes-based contracts with value-based pricing expert Omar Ali. One of the main issues in outcomes-based contracting, Ali said during the interview, are the administrative and logistical complexities […]
Cothran, Knoth Say Trust is Key in VBCs
Pharmacy Management Consultants Director Terry Cothran and Eisai Director of HEOR Russell Knoth during the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy's meeting in San Diego highlighted how trust and collaboration are key in developing value-based contracts. Cothran during the event said despite the […]
Article Proposes New System for Returning Information to Research Participants
A recent article published in Health Affairs proposes a new system by which to address the dynamic wants of research participants where information is concerned. The article comes amid "growing public demand" that participants of research initiatives are given access to all of their results. "The […]
Blog Post: ‘New Ways of Thinking’ Needed to Bring About Value-Based System
"New ways of thinking and operating" are tantamount to bringing about a robust value-based health care system, the authors of a recent blog post in Health Affairs write. The authors, Optum Life Sciences President Curt Medeiros and Merck Senior Vice President Susan Shiff, point to a recent […]
AJMC to Host VB-Onc Meeting in Chicago
The American Journal of Managed Care (AJMC) is planning to host a regional VB-Onc meeting April 25 in Chicago. According to a press release, the event, which will be held at the Millennium Knickerbocker Hotel, will spotlight the future of the Oncology Care Model and alternative payment […]
Report: Outcomes-Based Contracts Falling Short
While some look to outcomes-based contracts as a fix for high drug prices, insurers and experts say the alternative models have ultimately made little progress since their introduction, Modern Healthcare reports. According to the report, policymakers are increasingly looking more toward increased […]
Lilly Releases Report Detailing Humalog U100 Pricing
According to a new report from Eli Lilly, the average list price on its insulin drug, Humalog U100, posted a 52 percent increase (more than $200) between 2014 to mid-2017. The average price the drugmaker realized per patient, according to a BioPharma Dive report, dropped about 8 percent in the same […]
Article Spotlights ‘Excessive Pricing’ in Pharma
Margaret Kyle, MINES ParisTech and PSL Research University economics professor, in a recent article takes a look at high drug prices in the pharmaceutical industry, as well as some of the responses by other countries. "For branded products protected by patients, prices well in excess of marginal […]
Highlights from NPC, Discern Health Webinar
A recent National Pharmaceutical Council (NPC) blog post offers highlights from a Feb. 28 webinar it hosted in collaboration with Discern Health. The online event aimed to outline some of the key points in a white paper, "Improving Patient-reported Measures in Oncology," published by the NPC and […]
Article: Germany as Model for Single-Payer System
A recent blog post in Health Affairs suggests looking to Germany as a model for transitioning to a single-payer landscape from a multipayer system. Pointing to presidential hopefuls floating single-payer and "Medicare for All" proposals, the authors say such initiatives face key hurdles. " ... The […]
Analysis: ICER Framework in Medicaid Could Threaten 820K Prescriptions
If Medicaid used the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review's (ICER) value framework, some 42-99 percent of prescriptions for serious conditions would be at risk of not being covered, a new analysis from Xcenda suggests. PhRMA in a blog post says those figures reveal "the dangerous effects […]
Boston Health Economics Offers Instant Health Data Platform
Boston Health Economics is offering direct access to HealthCore's HIRE-Oncology's clinical oncology data through its Instant Health Data (IHD) platform, according to an email from HealthCore. The platform, according to the email, offers clients streamlined access to data to bolster collaboration […]
