In this issue: Value assessment, ICER, supported prices, march-in rights and 340B

December 12, 2023

Welcome to NPC This Week! We hope you'll join us each week for a look-ahead at the policy, research, and industry conversations that matter to the future of biopharmaceutical innovation. The DM's are open if you have suggestions - and please share with your network! - Michael Pratt, NPC Chief Communications Officer

? NPC Highlights

Real World Evidence: The Evidence Base’s latest episode of “Patti’s People” featured NPC’s Kimberly Westrich talking about value assessment, including how payers are using the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review’s frameworks.

Speaking of ICER: NPC continues to have significant concerns about ICER’s “Unsupported Price Increases” reports. In our latest statement, we suggest a much more accurate (though probably too long) title and suggest that ICER would be better served by retiring the unhelpful and misleading reports. Axios quoted NPC in its story about the latest ICER report in its follow-up story Tuesday morning.

Price Transparency: PharmaNews Intelligence quotes NPC President and CEO Dr. John M. O’Brien talking about the need for rebate transparency and a shift away from discussing only list prices.

? Industry News

Marching In: The big news of the past week was the Biden administration’s much-trumpeted announcement that it was looking more seriously at patent-canceling march-in rights. There was more nuance than originally met the eyes in the announcement, and even fans of the proposal were noting its limitations.

As readers of this newsletter will note, last week we highlighted recently published work supported by NPC that finds that?less than 10% of a cohort of 361 novel drugs patented between 2010-2020?were developed with some element of federally-sponsored research. The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board weighed in on the Administration ambushing pharma patents.

Colorado PDAB Rules on CF Drug: The Colorado Prescription Drug Affordability Board avoided making a decision that ignores the true value of breakthrough treatments by deciding that cystic fibrosis drug Trikafta is “not unaffordable.”

New Therapies: Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., wants to encourage new ways to pay for cell and gene therapies, Endpoints reported.

? ICYMI

PBM Reform Op-eds: The House overwhelmingly passed a package of health care bills on Monday that includes PBM reforms. The effort to impose more transparency on the pharmacy benefit manager market is bipartisan, as noted in this op-ed in The Hill from Reps. Buddy Carter, R-Ga., and Lisa Rochester, D-Del.

• Also: Senate Finance Committee member Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, wrote about PBM reform in a Newsweek op-ed.?

Copay Accumulators: It looks like the Biden administration is going to appeal a court ruling that tossed out its attempt to let insurers take the money from copay assistance.

340B: Speaking of court rulings, the American Action Forum has an analysis of a recent federal court ruling from South Carolina related to 340B. Here’s an NPC primer on 340B.

• Also: Former Vermont Democratic Gov. Howard Dean has issues with 340B. It’s worth a read.

FTC and FDA: The Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission have vastly different missions, but STAT reported that they are working together to “lower drug prices.”