The Cost Of A Cure: Revisiting Medicare Part D And Hepatitis C Drugs

Two years ago, soon after the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first breakthrough treatment for hepatitis C, we wrote about the potential cost of a cure to Medicare Part D and its beneficiaries. For that piece, we used the best available data to estimate the number of people on Medicare who might seek treatment and the impact on Medicare spending. Here we revisit our earlier analysis using new data released by CMS, and consider both the ongoing impact of hepatitis C drugs for Part D and the broader implications for Medicare of new high-priced drugs entering the market. Hepatitis C Drugs Have Driven Drug Spending Upward In November and December 2013, the FDA approved Olysio and Sovaldi, the first drugs in a new class of drugs to treat hepatitis C. Two other combination drugs (Harvoni and Viekira Pak) gained approval in 2014, and more hepatitis C drugs entered the market in 2015 and 2016. These drugs have been remarkable for two reasons. First, they represent treatments that are more effective and have fewer side effects than older drugs used to treat hepatitis C. They are generally viewed as a cure to a disease that affects an estimated 3 million Americans. Second, they come with high price tags. Sovaldi got attention for its list price of $1,000 per pill, or $84,000 for a full 12-week regimen. Competing drugs have also entered the market with high list prices, although the most recent drugs have somewhat lower list prices than Sovaldi. As described below, som...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - Category: Health Management Authors: Tags: Drugs and Medical Innovation Medicare FDA Harvoni hepatitis C prescription drug prices Sovaldi Source Type: blogs