The impacts of government reimbursement negotiation on targeted anticancer medication price, volume and spending in China

IntroductionNew targeted therapies have changed cancer treatment in the past decades. However, high prices of targeted anticancer medications have increased economic burden for both patients and health insurance systems. In July 2017, China implemented combined medication price negotiation and mandatory reimbursement policies for 15 targeted anticancer medications. This study assesses effects of the policy on hospital procurement prices, volumes and spending.MethodsUsing a quasi-experimental interrupted time series design, we analysed procurement data from the Chinese Medical Economic Information of 789 public hospitals in 30 provinces between January 2016 and September 2018. The intervention group consisted of 15 targeted anticancer medications with negotiated prices in 2017. The comparison group consisted of six targeted anticancer medications without negotiated prices by 2018. The effective date of the policy was September 2017.ResultsAfter the implementation of the 2017 medication price negotiation and reimbursement policy, cost per defined daily dose (DDD) of the 15 targeted anticancer medications dropped US$71.21 on average from an average US$169.24/DDD before (p=0.000). Compared with what would have happened without the intervention, cost/DDD of price-negotiated medications decreased by 48.9% (p=0.000), procurement volumes increased by 143.0% (p=0.000) and hospital medication spending decreased by 6.9% (p=0.146).ConclusionsThe 2017 medication price negotiation and reimbursement policy decreased targeted medication procurement costs per DDD, increased volumes procured and at least temporarily contained spending. These changes should result in better access to and affordability of targeted anticancer medications in China.

PP482 Invasive Electroencephalography In The Pre-Surgical Diagnosis Of Pharmacoresistant Epilepsy

IntroductionWorldwide, more than 50 million people suffer from epilepsy, and there are 16–51 new cases per 100,000 population each year. Up to 30 percent of patients with epilepsy are pharmacoresistant, who are candidates for surgical treatment. Invasive electroencephalography (iEEG) is a mandatory method in the arsenal of epileptic centers, and is gradually becoming the gold standard for invasive determination of boundaries between the affected and functional zones of the cortex and subcortical brain. Treatment costs correlate with the severity of the disease, with patients having uncontrolled seizures incurring eight times the costs compared to those with controlled epilepsy.MethodsTo assess the clinical and cost-effectiveness of the iEEG in the pre-surgical diagnosis of pharmacoresistant epilepsy, a systematic search of literature by keywords in the MEDLINE database was conducted. The search resulted in sixty-six articles. The analysis included twenty studies that met the search criteria.ResultsMost studies including meta-analysis show very low rates of complications of iEEG. Literature data demonstrate cost-effectiveness of the method in patients with pharmacoresistant epilepsy in comparison with continued antiepileptic drug therapy. As an integrated method, rather than a simple method, it takes maximum account of clinical, neurophysiological and anatomical-functional data to achieve accurate localization of the epileptogenic zone. Currently, iEEG is a clinically effective method to improve the safety and specificity of resective surgery.ConclusionsWith the use of iEEG, mortality and disability of patients with pharmacoresistant epilepsy will be significantly reduced. It has also been proven that epilepsy surgery leads to significant financial savings in the treatment of pharmacoresistant epilepsy. The results of the clinical and economic evaluation (mini-HTA report) have been submitted to the Ministry of Healthcare for decision-making on including iEEG in government reimbursement system.

Success of Big Infectious Disease Reimbursement Policy in China

Big infectious diseases do harm to the whole society, and it is highly crucial to control them on time. The major purpose of this article is to theoretically demonstrate that the Chinese government’s intervention in large-scale infectious diseases is successful and efficient. Two potential strategies were considered: strategy 1 was infectious disease without government intervention, and strategy 2 was infectious disease with government intervention. By evolution model, this article illustrates the efficiency of big infectious disease reimbursement policy in China. Without government reimbursement, this article finds that high expenditures accelerate the disease infection. The number of infected persons decreases under big infectious disease reimbursement policy in China. The higher the treatment costs, the more important the government intervention. Big infectious disease reimbursement policy in China can serve as an efficient example to cope with big infectious diseases.

Predictors of Initial Acceptance of Continuous Positive Airway Pressure in Obstructive Sleep Apnea Patients After Intensive Educational-Behavioral Program

Background: Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device therapy is the standard treatment for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) to date. However, acceptance and adherence rate remained low. Recent study showed that educational and behavioral modification program can improve the efficacy of CPAP use. Objectives: To study rate of acceptance and its predictor factors of in patients with obstructive sleep apnea after participant in group modification behavior program. Methods: This prospective cohort study was conducted in 247 obstructive sleep apnea patients at Ramathibodi Sleep Disorders Center, Ramathibodi Hospital from February to July 2015. There were indicated for CPAP. Participating states spanning included awareness, motivating, demonstration, and trials of CPAP evaluated every week for 3 weeks. Results: Of 247 obstructive sleep apnea patients (62% male) were included with apnea-hypopnea index (AIH) (median [interquartile range], 41.5 [46.4]), and acceptance CPAP (85%). Factors influencing decision to use CPAP were severity of diseases (OR, 4.1; 95% CI, 1.2 - 13.9), triple trials (OR, 8.6; 95% CI, 2.1 - 35.4), and government reimbursement (OR, 8.1; 95% CI, 2.9 - 22.4). Conclusions: After educational and behavioral intervention, the CPAP acceptance rate were high among Thai patients with obstructive sleep apnea. This program should be encouraged for more widespread clinical practice.

Cancer medicines in Asia and Asia-Pacific: What is available, and is it effective enough?

This review article is an overview of the session at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Asia 2018 Congress entitled: 'Cancer medicines in Asia and Asia-Pacific: What is available, and is it effective enough?'. The article provides an overview of the session speakers’ views on the impact that the lack of accessibility and availability of medicines has on patient outcomes in the treatment of breast cancer, colorectal cancer and lung cancer, responsible for more than one-third of cancer deaths in the Asian region. It also lists the various global policy initiatives that ESMO supports to promote the best cancer care in the Asian and Asia-Pacific region. The review presents extrapolated data from the ‘ESMO International Consortium Study on the availability, out-of-pocket costs and accessibility of antineoplastic medicines in countries outside of Europe’, which reveals several disparities among Asian countries, across the different income levels. In low- and middle-income countries, some barriers to the accessibility of anticancer medicines include the lack of government reimbursement, budget allocation for healthcare and quality-assured generic and biosimilar medicines, as well as shortages and patent rights. Throughout the article, the session presenters provide their views on strategies that can be considered to overcome these barriers.

The Role of Government Reimbursement in Drug Shortages

Beginning in the mid-2000s, the incidence of drug shortages rose, especially for generic injectable drugs such as anesthetics and chemotherapy treatments. We examine whether reimbursement changes contributed to the shortages, focusing on a reduction in Medicare Part B reimbursement to providers for drugs. We hypothesize that lower reimbursement put downward pressure on manufacturers' prices, which reduced manufacturers' incentives to invest in capacity, reliability, and new launches. We show that after the policy change, shortages rose more for drugs with higher shares of patients insured by Medicare, greater decreases in provider reimbursement, and greater decreases in manufacturer prices. (JEL H51, 118, L1, L65)

The Impact of Ultra-widefield Retinal Imaging on Practice Efficiency

I n the current cost- and resource-constrained healthcare environment in the United States, characterized by declining government reimbursement and increased utilization scrutiny by managed care plans, providers are challenged to continue delivering quality care to more patients while also more effectively managing practice economics. Employing technology to improve practice efficiency is one of the most promising solutions to this dilemma. We have demonstrated that the integration of ultra-widefield (UWF) retinal imaging in our practice is cost-effective. It has allowed us to increase the number of patient encounters while simultaneously raising the quality of care, and increasing patient satisfaction.