Pharmaceutical Policy and Pricing: Are Other Countries Getting Greater Value?

Spending on prescription drugs in the U.S. rose at a faster clip in 2009 than spending for hospital and physician care, a trend that is expected to continue through 2020. By some estimates, prescription drugs account for 15 cents of every health care dollar spent. Thus, federal and state budget cutters – as well as private health plans and hospitals – have a keen interest in restraining drug costs.

The desire to get a handle on drug spending is a focus in other countries as well. What are some strategies used in other countries to control pharmaceutical spending? How is comparative effectiveness research used in making drug coverage decisions? What is the impact of intellectual property law, and what happens when“blockbuster drugs” go off- patent and generics become available? How are value-based models being used by insurers and others to influence pharmaceutical utilization and health outcomes? How do the public and private sectors in the United States seek to contain pharmaceutical spending?

To address these and related questions, the Alliance for Health Reform and The Commonwealth Fund are sponsored a November 7 luncheon briefing. Panelists were: Sir Andrew Dillon, CEO of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) in England; Rainer Hess, chairman of Gemeinsamer Bundesausschuss/Federal Joint Committee in Germany; Jean-Luc Harousseau, M.D., chair haute of the Authorité de Santé (HAS)/ National Authority for Health in France; and Ian Spatz of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, and Manatt Health Solutions, U.S. Ed Howard of the Alliance and Robin Osborn of Commonwealth moderated. This briefing shed light on how the U.K., Germany and France set national pharmaceutical policies and what lessons learned in those countries may be applicable to the United States.

Transcript

Full Transcript (Adobe Acrobat PDF)

Speaker Presentations

Ian Spatz Presentation (PowerPoint)
Rainer Hess Presentation (PowerPoint)
Sir Andrew Dillon Presentation (PowerPoint)
Jean-Luc Harousseau Presentation (PowerPoint)

Event Details

Agenda (Adobe Acrobat PDF)
Speaker Biographies (Adobe Acrobat PDF)