Researchers, students, and patient advocates at Johns Hopkins have revealed a new data dashboard tool that provides information on COVID-19 vaccine eligibility and availability. The project was started after some people with disabilities voiced growing frustration in navigating when and in which […]
New CMS Director Could Indicate Shift in Medicare Prescription Drug Pricing Policy
Arielle Woronoff is joining the new administration as director of the CMS Office of Legislation. She previously held worked in health policy roles, including a position on the Senate Finance Committee where she contributed to the Grassley-Wyden bill. This move could lead to major changes if Medicare […]
JAMA Article Proposes HTA As Solution for Out-of-Control Prescription Drug Prices; Speculation That Biden Will Look to ICER Model
In a recent article published in JAMA, the authors note that the US spends more per capita for prescription drugs than any otherOCER (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) country. High prices continue to be a source of frustration and concern for many Americans. Medicare’s […]
ICER Unsatisfied With Fibrogen’s Roxadustat Evidence; FDA Calls Advisory Committee
ICER held a meeting on February 11th, during which its independent appraisal committee agreed that it was not possible to determine roxudustat’s effectiveness. The drug is aimed at patients with anemia in the context of chronic kidney disease. Shortly after the meeting, the FDA held a public […]
NIH Statement on Improving Equity; Francis Collins Announces UNITE Initiative to Address Structural Racism in Biomedical Science
Dr. John Denny, CEO of the NIH’s All of Us Research Program, released a statement on how the NIH is seeking to improve diversity and equity. The core mission is to address systemic transgressions that have led many populations and people being excluded or profoundly harmed by research programs. NIH […]
Sanofi Publishes 2021 Report on Principles in Prescription Drug Pricing, Notes $890 Million in Patient Assistance Programs
Unjustified price increases continue to be a point of contention in the pharma industry. Sanofi has published a report aimed at improving transparency related to drug price increases. Notably, Sanofi announces price decreases of 7.8% in 2020. The report details $543 million in savings for patients […]
Novartis and NHS England Agree on Price of Costly SMA Drug; Zolgensma Nearly £1.8 Million per Dose
SMA (spinal muscular atrophy) is characterized by muscle weakness, paralysis, and eventual loss of movement. It is associated with extremely poor outcomes; children with SMA Type 1 do not usually live past 2 years. Zolgensma (onasemnogene abeparvovec) is £1.79 million per dose, making it the highest […]
MSL Society Offers Wednesday Webinar on Navigating KOL Engagements During COVID-19
The Medical Science Liaison Society (MSLS) will host a webinar this Wednesday from 12 PM – 1 PM CST on the key challenges faced by the MSL community during the COVID-19 pandemic. Panelists include Bruno Larvol, MBA, from LARVOL, along with Dr. Niccole Larsen from ACADIA Pharmaceuticals, where she is […]
ICER Reveals Prescription Drug Cost Sharing Policies, Concludes Many Will Dislike Findings
A recent ICER whitepaper discusses a range of policies designed to limit drug prices. It focuses on three main topics related to prescription drug coverage: cost-sharing provisions, benchmarks for clinical eligibility, and economic-step therapy. The authors conclude by noting they expect criticism […]
GOP Avoids Drug Cost Questions During Becerra HHS Hearings
Xavier Becerra is Biden’s pick for HHS (Health and Human Services). Earlier this week, he took questions from Republican lawmakers, covering a wide range of topics. Probing questions related to health insurance coverage were thoroughly covered. However, the GOP avoided questions related to drug […]
Aetion’s Take on RWE Expansion in Europe
Aetion’s Ashley Jaska, Vice President of Science, and Nicholas Deltour, Vice President of Real-World Solutions, offered their insight into how RWE (real world evidence) might progress in Europe. For years, RWD (real world data) has been used by pharmaceutical companies to make safety calls. Now, […]
Storage a Major Challenge in Genomics Tools for Precision Medicine
Genomics tools are driving progress in precision medicine. These tools, such as next generation sequencing (NGS) technologies, allow for large amounts of data to be collected and analyzed per person. However, storing the exponentially increasing amounts of data remains a simple yet difficult problem […]
Prescription Drugs Only One Piece of High Healthcare Costs–Look to Provider Cost
Dr. Anupam Jena, an associate professor of healthcare policy at Harvard Medical School and doctor at Massachusetts General Hospital, shares his thoughts on the high price of American medicine. He notes that over 30% of national health expenditures go to hospital care while another 20% come from […]
California and New York Newest States Seeking to Create Their Own Contracts With Medicaid
A growing number of states have decided to form their own contracts with Medicaid. Most recently, California and New York announced their plans to negotiate their own rates. This trend is expected to continue—other states including Tennessee, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Missouri, and North Dakota have […]
ISMPP Releases Results of Poll on Marketing Scenario
The ISMPP recently published the results of a poll asking respondents how they might respond to a scenario where a marketing colleague seeks to sit in on a strategic data meeting with the respondent’s medical colleagues. Nearly 75% of the 115 participants decided to maintain their meeting format, […]
2021 Healthcare Predictions As Democrats Hold House, Senate, Presidential Office
Now that Democrats hold control of the House of Representatives, the Senate, and Biden has been elected president, healthcare is expected to be one major area of focus. A new stimulus bill is anticipated along with a nationwide vaccine push. A new report discusses which healthcare policies will […]
Register Today for Virtual ISPOR 2021 Conference on HEOR, HTAs, and RWD
ISPOR will host its yearly conference on HEOR (health economics and outcomes research) virtually, from May 17-20. The theme of this year’s conference is: HEOR: Evolving for Tomorrow’s Challenges. Register today to attend important sessions on RWD (real world data), study design, HTAs (health […]
A Conversation with Gilead Leader on Impact of RWE in Drug Development
Dr. Diana Brainard, Senior Vice President and Virology Therapeutic Area Head at Gilead Sciences, provides her thoughts on the role of RWE (real world evidence) during the COVID-19 pandemic and how it’s forever changed the drug development landscape. Thanks to RWE, Gilead has been able to analyze […]
Understanding the Spectrum of Low-Value Care and Economic Implications
In a recent study, researchers compared over one thousand low-value care recommendations from five US healthcare organizations (USPSTF, ACP, ACC/AHA, ASCO, and the Choosing Wisely Initiative). They sought to assess the clinical benefits and economic value of these recommendations, noting a large […]
The Case for Prescription Drug Price Transparency: Listen to Patients and Providers
Although recent regulations require healthcare systems to provide pricing information, there is no standardized method to do so. With these changes in transparency come new technologies that allow providers to access real-time pricing data, allowing for easily accessible information. Patients are […]
The US FDA Has a Different Rubric for Cancer Drug Approval Than the UK and Canada
Different regulatory bodies have different criteria when it comes to drug approval, especially in the case of cancer drugs. The US FDA tends to be accepting of less-than-certain outcomes and prefers to accelerate cancer drug approvals. However, the use of surrogate markers is not always associated […]
Sarepta’s New Treatment for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Approved by FDA, $1 Million Yearly Cost Despite Lack of Confirmation Studies
Sarepta Therapeutics has created a third drug for use in Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD), termed Amondys 45. It recently received approval from the FDA. The pharma company’s three DMD drugs: Amondys 45, Exondys 51, and Vvondys 53, will reach approximately a third of patients with DMD. However, […]
How Will Emphasis on Patient Centricity and ICER Influence Payer Decisions?
The 21st Century Cures Act, as well as FDA guidelines, are putting a spotlight on patient centricity—from drug development to patient care. In a recent report, ICON surveyed top payers in the US to determine how PROs impact decisions across this spectrum, including predictions regarding future […]
Swedish Scientist Faces Backlash Over COVID-19 Research, Sweden to Strengthen Academic Freedom Laws
Jonas Ludvigsson, a professor of clinical epidemiology at the Karolinska Institute and a pediatrician at Örebro University Hospital, examined the incidence of COVID-19 in children. He noted relatively low rates of severe disease in children. His peer-reviewed publication was seen as in direct […]
Pricing Experts Offer Insight Into Use of Advanced Analytics, Note 85% of Companies Lack Sufficient Data or Detailed Pricing Information
85% of interviewed companies lack sufficient data, price quality, or price transparency information to be able to properly apply advanced analytics. Experts in the industry have recognized the potential applications of advanced analytics, but understanding the point at which, and how, to utilize […]
2021 Global Medical Affairs Outsourcing Market Research Report Details 2028 Outlook
HealthCare Intelligence has released a report analyzing worldwide trends relating to healthcare outsourcing markets using primary and secondary methods along with SWOT analysis and Porter’s Five Forces Framework. Predicted trends for 2021 are described in detail, along with predictions for 2028. […]
New Bills Propose High Taxes for Unjustified Drug Price Increases
Legislators in Washington and Hawaii have introduced bills aimed at drug price increases by pharmaceutical companies. Should these bills be passed, price increases without sufficient clinical evidence would bring large penalties upon the pharma companies. These bills, among others aimed at limiting […]
Aetna Return to ACA Exchanges Reflects Industry-Wide Trend Amid COVID-19 Relief Package Boost
The Aetna insurance division of the CVS Health Corp. will return to the ACA (Affordable Care Act) exchanges in 2022. Experts see the move as a sign that the individual insurance market is becoming increasingly appealing for payers. This Aetna move is expected to be one of many similar shifts in the […]
A Discussion with Paul Perreault of CSL Limited on COVID-19
Paul Perreault is CEO and Managing Director of CSL Limited, a top three global biotech company. He was invited to share his insights regarding COVID-19 and how his company has been able to adjust to the pandemic. CSL helped to establish the CoVIg-19 Plasma Alliance to develop immune therapies and […]
Will ‘All of Us’ Bring Positive Change to Research?
“All of Us” is the $1.5 billion initiative led by the federal government with the purpose of collecting health data from diverse backgrounds. It’s considered as an important step forward in precision medicine—for all backgrounds. At the same time, it may also have far-reaching impacts in driving […]
