CER Daily Newsfeed

Hubs East 2025: Pushing Back Against Cost-Shifting Programs

(4/10, Nicholas Saraceno, Pharmaceutical Commerce) “In a video interview with Pharma Commerce, Kimberly Westrich, MD, chief strategy offer at the National Pharmaceutical Council, describes how in response to rising healthcare costs, employers have turned to high-deductible health plans and higher out-of-pocket (OOP) expenses, causing patients to pay more for healthcare. To help alleviate this financial burden, manufacturers offer copay assistance programs, which are aimed at improving medication adherence and preventing disease progression. However, insurers have introduced cost-shifting programs such as copay accumulators, maximizers, and alternative funding programs (AFPs) to manage these costs.” View Video

Rivaroxaban Comparable to Warfarin for LV Thrombus Post-MI

(4/10, Sue Hughes, Medscape) reports “The effectiveness of rivaroxaban, a direct oral anticoagulant, in resolving acute left ventricular thrombus in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) was similar to that of warfarin in the RIVAWAR trial. ‘We saw complete resolution of thrombus in more than 95% of patients in both groups, with no significant increase in deaths, ischemic stroke, or major bleeding,’ said principal study investigator Jehangir Ali Shah, MBBS, from the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases in Karachi, Pakistan.” Full

Video: How AI, Data Analytics, and Outcomes-Based Contracts Are Shaping Health Care: Laura Bobolts, PharmD, BCOP

(4/9, Pearl Steinzor, Laura R. Bobolts, PharmD, BCOP, The American Journal of Managed Care) “Laura Bobolts, PharmD, BCOP, senior vice president of clinical strategy and growth at OncoHealth, shares how health care leaders are advancing value-based care through improved data strategies, real-world evidence, and AI-driven efficiencies, without losing the human touch.” View Video

Final Reflection Paper Sets Direction for Regulatory Use of RWD in Non-Interventional Studies

(4/10, Katie McCool, The Evidence Base) reports “...The paper focuses on the use of RWD to evaluate medicines in real-world clinical settings. Data sources may include electronic health records, insurance claims, registries, prescribing and dispensing data, patient-reported outcomes, and data from wearable devices. It distinguishes between studies with descriptive objectives, which aim to characterize populations or patterns of treatment, and those with causal objectives, which seek to estimate the effects of medical interventions on outcomes.” Full