A new year brings the promise of new beginnings and progress. In 2018, value was a trending topic in healthcare. Payers, employers and providers pursued dialogue and data to help them identify, and pay for, value. Patients sought to bring forward their perspectives on value, not only regarding the impact of out-of-pocket costs, but also the impact on their experience of living with chronic illness and seeking novel, targeted therapies, or even cures.
Value assessors—organizations endeavoring to evaluate clinical and economic benefits of healthcare relative to costs—became more prominent. The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) conducted cost-effectiveness-based reviews on drugs in 11 therapeutic areas, and organizations ranging from employers and the Department of Veterans Affairs to CVS Caremark announced programs that relied on ICER’s analyses. Patient organizations voiced concern whether cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) discriminates against people with disabilities or chronic disease. And the Innovation and Value Initiative (IVI) introduced an open-source, patient-centric and scientifically-advanced platform for evaluating value in rheumatoid arthritis.
While we don’t predict that value assessment will resolve pitched debates about drug pricing in the coming year, we do believe measuring the value of therapy will continue to gain traction and generate interest as stakeholders remain focused on examining cost, benefit, and risk of healthcare technologies.
With that in mind, we offer our top 5 value-assessment predictions for 2019.
In 2018, value assessment became a common refrain in policy and research conversations. In 2019, we could see a year of greater consensus and improved practice—of achieving value assessment 2.0. At IVI, we are proud to help advance the science and practice of value assessment. We hope that you’ll join us in this important mission.
Wishing you a high-value new year!
About the Authors
Jennifer Bright, MPA, is the executive director of IVI, and Mark Linthicum, MPP, is the director of scientific communications.
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