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Industrybriefs By Kayla Walsh
Pharma Fights Back Against Drug Price Regulation
The administration has been proposing ways to deflate drug prices—the most recently suggested order is focused
on tying U.S. drug prices to the much lower price of the same drugs in other countries, in addition to discounts for insulin and epinephrine, eliminating rebates from pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), and allowing drug imports. While pharma CEOs didn’t seem concerned at first, claiming the order couldn’t be legally implemented, they’ve now drafted a counteroffer. Politico reports that PhRMA proposed a 10% discount on drugs administered at hospitals and clinics and covered under Medicare Part B as opposed
to the 30% discount expected by the White House. They also offered a cost- sharing cap for patients in Medicare Part D’s catastrophic coverage phase while referencing notable differences
in innovation and access between the U.S. healthcare system and those of other nations. The lobby group claims they’ll implement the voluntary rules quickly, eliminating the need for formal regulation.
A New Talent Firm Emerges
Industry veteran Matthew West introduces Global Talent LLC,
a full-service talent acquisition
and development firm for the pharmaceutical and healthcare communications industry. Founder Matthew West has 20 years of
experience in the industry and has put his connections towards building a robust database of professionals and an elite network of pharmaceutical advertising and PR agencies, medical education and communication firms, and global biotech and pharmaceutical manufacturing organizations.
Jim Lang, CEO, EVERSANA
EVERSANA Expands its Data and Analytics
Data-driven predictive modeling is becoming increasingly valuable to healthcare marketers. In order to offer the best-in-class ability
to analyze data quickly and make predictions that lead to smarter, faster actions for their life sciences clients, EVERSANA acquired HVH Precision Analytics and its predictive analytics platform.
“This acquisition marks a transformative moment for EVERSANA and our clients,” EVERSANA CEO Jim Lang said
in a statement. “Our integrated commercial services are now powered by a military grade analytics platform which will optimize every corner
of our operation, ranging from our strategies to ensure long-term market access and revenue management
to our services improving patient adherence.”
Purchased from Havas Health & You (HH&Y) and Perspecta, the AI and machine learning platform is recognized as one of the most
powerful tools in the healthcare sector for marketing analytics. The acquisition allows for continuity with existing HH&Y clients while expanding EVERSANA’s offerings to include a commercial services platform designed to solve global pricing, access, reimbursement, adherence, and product delivery challenges in the life sciences sector.
“The value brought by data and
analytics is long overdue within the pharmaceutical industry,” said Steve Costalas, CEO, HVH Precision Analytics. “Our technology and talented team are at the forefront of the industry and are already propelling faster analysis and actions for EVERSANA clients. The fit
is seamless, and we are onboarding new programs right now.”
Determined to Fixx Hemophilia
Fixx Pharmaceuticals recently announced the launch of its business operations in Las Vegas where it will pursue its ambitious goal of curing hemophilia with CRISPR gene editing.
Jesse John Francis Clark, Founder of Fixx, wants to commercialize products as soon as possible that he says will decrease the overall cost of care for the 20,000 hemophilia patients in the U.S. “We are going to develop a product that is more cost-effective for payers. We’re looking to keep it under $2 million
per patient,” Clark said in a statement. “If we are successful in developing a commercialized product, we are looking at upwards of $40 billion in sales from the U.S. market alone. I think our investors will be happy with that.”
Clark, a lifelong advocate for people with bleeding disorders and founder
of the 2018 non-profit HemoAware Corporation, founded the brand-new company this year with the goal of restoring normal gene function through CRISPR editing.
14 pm360 magazine / September 2020
shutterstock.com; EVERSANA