Controlling Access and Cost of Pharmaceuticals

While most people would agree that medicines improve health and life expectancy, payers and policymakers have an increasing interest in evaluating if the benefit is worth their price, particularly as longevity and new treatments contribute to cost growth. For years, public and private organizations and their economists have worked to identify approaches to assess the value of medications. With varying degrees, those models have been used to grant or deny access to treatment or to seek a price discount. However, with the growing cost of health care, there has been increasing pressure for greater control over drug prices. This has led policymakers to expand the use of evidence to control access to medicines and the prices paid for them.