Market Access "Back to School": How to Plan and Prioritize Your 2025 Projects

As we approach 2025, the strategic brand and tactical planning cycle is in full swing. Given the rapidly evolving biopharma market, policy shifts in pricing and coverage, and increasing competition in key clinical areas, it’s crucial to prioritize projects that will drive the greatest impact. Here are some things to consider as you plan and prioritize your 2025 initiatives.

Strategic Planning and Prioritization for 2025

1. Assess and Align with Market Dynamics Pricing and Reimbursement: With the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) exerting new pressures on drug pricing, especially in oncology, prioritize projects that future-proof your pricing strategies. For instance, a few of the Big Pharma players have been actively adjusting their pricing and reimbursement strategies for immuno-oncology therapies to better align with evolving payer demands. Make sure your 2025 pricing projects consider these policy changes and consider what competitors are doing in terms of value-based models that can withstand scrutiny from both payers and regulators. Prioritize developing HEOR studies that demonstrate the long-term value of your therapies.
2. Leverage Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) and Advocacy Groups KOL Engagement: Collaborate with influential KOLs to gather insights that will shape HEOR/market access related studies and access/launch messaging. Prioritize setting up advisory boards with these leaders to gain early input, ensuring activities to capture HEOR-relevant endpoints in clinical development align with what payers are looking for. Engage with patient organizations to amplify the patient voice in your planning process. Develop projects that integrate patient feedback into the design and delivery of market access communications, ensuring your 2025 plans resonate with both patients and payers and leveraging the patient voice to help push payers to do the right thing in terms of meeting coverage and reimbursement needs.
3. Digital Engagement and Real-World Evidence (RWE) Digital Tools for Access and Patient Support: Several biopharma companies have made major investments in digital platforms that support patient adherence and engagement, particularly in oncology and rare diseases. Prioritize projects that develop or enhance these platforms for 2025 and beyond, whether as an integral part of your hub and patient support services or as a more comprehensive patient marketing and engagement strategy. Consider creating personalized digital health solutions that leverage AI to support patients requiring close monitoring and a heavier level of interaction; a number of emerging companies are offering partnership solutions here. Projects that prioritize RWE collection in real-time, leveraging patient-reported data, will become critical for the long run in demonstrating long-term efficacy and safety to both payers and regulatory bodies, opening up long-term opportunities for ongoing access.
4. Guidelines and Pathways: Projects aimed at ensuring oncology therapies are incorporated into the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines should always be a top priority. Focus on projects that will support timely submissions to NCCN for your expanded indications or product/indication launches. Work with major health systems to ensure your therapies are included in their treatment pathways based on NCCN inclusion, understanding that institution-level pathways, payer pathways, and PBM pathways may create a multi-level matrix of incentivized decisions that impact when and how your product is prescribed, covered, and reimbursed. Across the board, prioritize projects can move the needle on Guidelines inclusion and prioritization on pathways that impact the highest volumes of patients.
5. Competitive Intelligence and Market Positioning: Conduct deep dives into competitors and "market access analogs" (understanding that these may differ from clinical analogs) to understand their 2025 plans and offerings, particularly in areas such as patient support and co-pay/cost-share offsets. Work with the right external partners to ensure that patient support programs run smoothly and keep your patients on track.

Checklist for 2025 Planning

• Market Dynamics Review: Reassess pricing strategies in light of IRA and value-based care trends.
• Payer and KOL Engagement: Plan early engagements with payers and influential KOLs.
• Digital and RWE Initiatives: Invest in digital platforms and RWE studies that support your key products.
• Guidelines and Pathways Inclusion: Prioritize submissions to NCCN and pathways.
• Competitor Analysis and Partnerships: Analyze competitor plans and explore strategic partnerships.

Planning and prioritizing projects for 2025 requires a strategic focus on market dynamics, payer expectations, and technological innovation. By following this checklist, your brand can ensure that it is well-positioned to navigate the upcoming year!

Sigla Sciences is here to help you navigate the complexities of the 2025 planning cycle. With our deep expertise in oncology, rare diseases, and cell/gene therapy, we provide tailored strategies that not only align with market realities but also anticipate future challenges. Our team of professionals, with experience from top-tier institutions and biopharma companies, is ready to partner with you to ensure your 2025 projects are prioritized effectively and executed flawlessly.

Don’t leave your 2025 success to chance! Contact us today to schedule a consultation and let us help you craft a strategic plan that drives real results.

Jennifer Hinkel MSc CHW FRSA Cory Kidd Sarah Charles-Smith