Anthem is offering $2.5 billion in financial aid in an effort to cushion the blow from COVID-19 for customers and providers, FierceHealthcare reports. According to the report, the financial credits will be available next month. "Consumers, care providers and our local communities are all […]
Report: Gilead Poised to Sell $7.6 Billion of Remdesivir in 2022
Gilead could make as much as $7.6 billion in 2022 off its promising COVID-19 treatment remdesivir, according to Wall Street analyst Leerink. According to media reports, Leerink suggests Gilead will sell treatment rounds of the drug for $5,000 in the U.S., which is slightly higher than the max […]
A Look at How Germany’s Structures Drug Purchasing
James Robinson in a recent perspective piece published in NEJM looks at how Germany purchases medicines. Germany's system, he writes, not only incentivizes agreements but also restricts price increases if there exists no evidence-based justification. To read the write up, click here. (Paid […]
RCTs vs. RWE? Why Not Both?
Aetion Co-Founder and President Jeremy Rassen in a recent blog post discusses a new paradigm in which randomized controlled trials and real-world studies are viewed less as competing tools, and more as specific tools for specific problems. "An emerging movement challenges the perceived dichotomy […]
Survey Finds Many Have Delayed Health Services in Response to COVID-19
A recent survey by AMCP and the Alliance of Community Health Plans found that many, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, have delayed health care services. Seventy-two percent of the respondents reported a negative impact on their health care, with only 31 percent saying they feel comfortable […]
AHRQ Director Says Data Resources ‘Poised to Inform the Battle Against COVID-19’
The Agency for Healthcare Quality and Research's (AHQR) signature data resources could play a key role in the fight against COVID-19, AHQR Director Gopal Khanna writes in a recent blog post. Khanna points to two major resources, the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) and the Medical […]
Article Considers COVID-19’s Impact on HTA
A recent article by Paula Lorgelly and Amanda Adler looks at how the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting health technology assessment. COVID-19 will have a lasting impact on life as we know it, they write, and it's "likely that HTA will similarly adapt to this shock." "Our healthcare systems are […]
Proposed Framework Looks to Facilitate Value-Based Payment Reforms
In a recent article published on Health Affairs, a group of researchers proposes a new framework aimed at guiding the application of value-based payment reforms. Marianne Hamilton Lopez, Gregory W. Daniel, Nicholas C. Fiore, Aparna Higgins and Mark B. McClellan developed the […]
JMCP Series Highlights Pharmacy Reimbursement
The June issue of the Journal of Managed Care & Specialty Pharmacy features a unique series that includes five perspectives on community pharmacy reimbursement. Each perspective outlines key challenges in the current pharmacy reimbursement system, as well as potential solutions. "The […]
Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ Cahill: One-Size-Fits-All CEA ‘Not Adequate for Every Medicine’
Vertex Pharmaceuticals VP and head of HEOR Jaime Cahill in a recent Health Affairs blog post says current cost-effectiveness evaluation methods "often fail to capture unique attributes and circumstances." When standard evaluation methods are applied to the unique attributes that arise in […]
Blockchain as a Solution to Supply Chain Issues?
Could blockchain technology help alleviate some of the bottlenecks in the supply chain? A recent article on Harvard Business Review looks at why the pharmaceutical industry is betting on the innovative technology. "As both the technology and the industry's processes for working together […]
FDA Chief Vows to Permanently Adopt COVID-19 Measures to Accelerate R&D
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Stephen Hahn in a recent speech said the agency will work toward permanent adoption of COVID-19 measures aimed at accelerating research and development, FierceBiotech reports. "To the extent that innovations and adaptations we implemented during the […]
PhRMA: PBMs Hamper Access with Expanded Exclusion Lists
In a recent blog post, PhRMA says CVS Caremark and Express Scripts have hampered patient access to a number of drugs by adding them to their formulary exclusion lists. At the beginning of the year, CVS added 109 drugs to its exclusion list, bringing the total number of excluded drugs to 282, […]
ISPOR Europe 2020 Abstract Submission Deadline is July 8
The deadline for abstract submissions for ISPOR Europe 2020, which is set to kick off Nov. 14 in Milan, Italy, is July 8. ISPOR is accepting submissions in 14 categories, including clinical outcomes, economic evaluation, health policy and regulatory and health technology assessment. For more […]
ISMPP Offering CPE Credits
The International Society of Medical Publication Professionals (ISMPP) is offering continuing pharmacy education (CPE) credits as part of its upcoming virtual meeting set for June 16. CPE credits are provided through the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education. Individuals can earn up to […]
Free Webinar to Spotlight HTA
The Basel Biometric Society (BBS) and the European Federation of Statisticians in the Pharmaceutical Industry (EFSPI) are set to host a free webinar on topics related to health technology assessment. The online event is scheduled for 9 a.m. EST June 30. Featured speakers include […]
CMS Implements Harsher Penalties for Nursing Homes Amid Pandemic
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Servicies (CMS) is implementing stiffer penalties for nursing homes which are repeatedly caught violating infection control protocol, FierceHealthcare reports. According to the report, as of May 24, some 26,000 COVID-19 deaths were individuals in nursing […]
AMCP Offers Corporate Training
The Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) is offering corporate training in the managed care pharmacy landscape. Training includes in-depth tracks on managed care pharmacy fundamentals, as well as value-based contracting. For more details, click here. […]
PMEA 2020 Accepting Entries
The PMEA Awards program is accepting entries for the 2020 event. The deadline for entries is Aug. 27. Set for Nov. 25, the PMEA Awards recognizes excellence in a range of categories, including patient education and support, collaboration and partnerships, as well as new product […]
Antonijevic Talks Adaptive Design Methods in Free On-Demand Webinar
Zoran Antonijevic, chair and leader of the DIA Adaptive Design Scientific Working Group, in an interview with Cytel discussed adaptive design methods in drug development. The discussion is available in a free, on-demand webinar. To watch the full webinar on Cytel's website, click here. […]
EMA Calls for Transparency, Collaboration in COVID-19 Studies
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) is urging transparency and collaboration on COVID-19 studies to facilitate more robust results. "High-quality observational research of real world data collected during the pandemic can be an important complement to the results of randomised clinical trials in […]
Highlights of Flatiron Posters at ASCO Meeting
Flatiron Health in a recent post offers highlights of its eight posters on virtual display for the American Society of Clinical Oncology's 2020 meeting. Flatiron Health Vice President and head of medical and scientific affairs Dr. Neal Meropol says the presentations had the goal of "[learning] […]
Blues Plans in Lawsuit Claim CVS Inflated Generic Prices
Six insurers under the Blue Cross Blue Shield umbrella are suing CVS Health, claiming the pharmacy chain inflated generic drug prices, FierceHealthcare reports. "Had CVS been open and notorious about its fraudulent pricing scheme, it never would have succeeded—plaintiffs would have insisted that […]
ISPOR Offering Virtual Access to Short Courses
The International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) is offering virtual access to its "most sought after" short courses. According to ISPOR's website, the courses will be available June 17-July 30. "Experience the same relevant curriculum and expert instructors […]
Dubois: It’s Time to Talk COVID-19 Prices
In a race to develop a vaccine for COVID-19, the biopharmaceutical industry has worked at "unheard-of speed," National Pharmaceutical Council CSO Robert Dubois writes in a recent Health Affairs blog post. With that, he writes, it's time to get a leg up on pricing discussions. "Fortunately, […]
Study Examines Value-Based Arrangements
A study published earlier this year in Value in Health explores the role of value-based arrangements in the U.S. health care system. The analysis was conducted by National Pharmaceutical Council's Robert Dubois, Kimberly Westrich and former research manager Lisabeth Buelt. To read NPC's blog […]
AMCP to Host Webinar on Pre-Approval Communications with Payers
The Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) is set to host a webinar June 2 on how payers can fill in the evidence gaps in pre-approval data. The webinar, "Out in Front - Effective Pre-approval Communication with Payers," is set for 2 p.m. EST June 2. "As payers conduct product reviews earlier […]
Study Finds Greater Risk of Death, Cardiac Problems Tied to Malaria Drugs Touted by Trump
A recent study suggests the malaria drugs touted by President Donald Trump as coronavirus treatments not only don't help, but are also tied to greater risk of death and cardiac problems, the Associated Press reports. "Not only is there no benefit, but we saw a very consistent signal of harm," […]
JHE Editors Honor Wagstaff
The Journal of Health Economics is offering free access to the late Adam Wagstaff's contributions. Wagstaff had 24 full articles and 4 comments in JHE which generated 3,477 citations as of May. JHE says his contributions will be available free of charge until May 2021, the first anniversary of […]
Former FDA Chiefs Encourage Collection of RWE
Former Food and Drug Administration chiefs Mark McClellan and Scott Gottlieb urged greater incentives for the collection of real-world evidence to support COVID-19 therapies, Inside Health Policy reports. To read the full report, click here. […]
