Methodology Corner: Quantitative Research for Answering Product Utilization Questions
by Katie Kwan
Senior Analyst
With new therapies populating disease categories and increasing the competitive landscape, is your organization interested in understanding how your product can
maximize access when managed care organizations:
- Choose a benefit design classification for your product (e.g. pharmacy, medical, hybrid cross-benefit, and innovative value based benefit designs)?
- Steer utilization of your product through differential tier placement and specialty tier adoption?
- Mandate preference through treatment guidelines adoption or step edits and prior authorization implementation?
- Enforce prior authorization controls and therapy preference to physicians?
- Select reimbursement methodologies and values, and in order to optimize savings, decrease physician incentives, and obviate a shift in site of care?
If so, conducting quantitative research studies may be an effective way of answering these questions. With quantitative findings, your organization can characterize the payer landscape and develop a strategy for utilization maximization. Benefits include:
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Biosimilar Pricing Implications
by Kirk McConnell
Manager, Syndicated Studies
Today, biosimilars are top of mind for many stakeholders. The government is developing legal pathways for biosimilar approval and launch. Payers are figuring out how to leverage the potential launch of biosimilars to contain specialty drug spend. Drug manufacturers are anticipating what the launch of biosimilars will do to branded drug costs. Click image to enlarge 
Because of these issues, the most recent edition of the Managed Care Biologics and Injectables Index asked 100 payers to anticipate the discounts that will be offered by biosimilars. The results were surprising. Payers believe that biosimilars will enter at an average discount of 22% over branded alternatives. Furthermore, payers believe that biosimilar entry will push branded agents to give an average discount of 13% off of current prices.
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How Do You Get More Out of Your Advisory Board?
by Nicole Dautel
Director, Tactical Offerings
Typically, advisory boards can provide qualitative insights into managed care dynamics. But there is more that can be accomplished in bringing managed care customers together for a live meeting. By setting different and more ambitious expectations, marketers can gain tremendous strategic benefits, not only in terms of learning, but also in setting the groundwork for legitimately influencing major market forces.
It’s about the focus – ask for more
Design the program content not only to generate insights, but to help develop programs and strategies, and even to determine how important market dynamics can be altered.
It’s about the people – diversify
Include not only payers, but also some or all of the following: clinicians, PBMs or SPPs, employer representatives, patient advocacy groups, health economists or actuaries, academic experts, guidelines developers, and other key voices. The problem with an all payer group – or any homogeneous group – is that it tends to overstate its influence.
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If you would like more information about The Zitter Group and our offerings, please email us at: contact@zitter.com
