Additional Pricing Considerations

During this segment, Bruce Feinberg, DO; Scott Gottlieb, MD; Brian Kiss, MD; Michael Kolodziej, MD; and Ted Okon, MBA, discuss factors that influence prices for oncology drugs as well as for medications for other disease states.

With regard to Sovaldi, the hepatitis C patient population is relatively large compared with the patient populations for certain cancers, notes Dr Gottlieb. Thus, pricing changes for Sovaldi have a large financial impact due to the number of patients infected with hepatitis C.

The patient populations eligible for cell-based and gene therapy—based therapies that are being developed in oncology may be relatively small, comments Dr Gottlieb. However, these treatments are likely to be associated with extremely high costs, and discussions about how to finance treatment and reduce costs are necessary.

Mr Okon and Drs Feinberg, Kiss, and Kolodziej reflect on how volume and competition within the market impacted the cost of Sovaldi and discuss how volume and competition may impact the pricing of new oncology agents as they enter the market.

Dr Kolodziej highlights additional considerations that will influence future financial incentives and reimbursements, and the costs of emerging treatment options. For example, he suggests that innovative treatment options and more competition within the market may have a substantial impact.