CER Daily Newsfeed

National Pharmaceutical Council Study Reveals Post-Approval Oncology Trials Fall after Inflation Reduction Act, with Disproportionate Effect on Small Molecules

(9/11, Katie McCool, The Evidence Base) reports “...The authors used a difference-in-difference analysis to separate the impact of this policy from other influences, such as the pandemic. As Dr Patterson, Senior Director of Research at the NPC, explained: ‘We used the trend of biologics as the control to estimate the impact of the shorter DPNP eligibility timeline on initiation of post-approval clinical trials among oncology small molecules. The significant additional decline of nearly five fewer small molecule trials a month suggests that we're already observing the impact of the pill penalty in small molecule cancer research.’ Dr Zheng, lead author and NPC Research Manager, noted the importance of small molecule drugs for patients: ‘In addition to the therapeutic benefits, small molecule drugs often provide greater flexibility and convenience for patients, making cancer treatments possible through a pill taken at home. We sought to quantify the impact of their shorter ‘clock' to government price regulation on post-approval clinical trials for oncology.’” Full

Real-World Data Show Tirzepatide Benefit in Type 1 Diabetes

(9/11, Miriam E. Tucker, Medscape) reports “Tirzepatide produced significant weight loss, reduced insulin requirements, and improved glucose control without increasing hypoglycemia when used off-label in adults with type 1 diabetes (T1D), new observational data showed.” Full

ACO REACH 2023 Performance Results Indicate A Pathway To Sustainable Accountable Care

(9/11, Kylie Brown, Rachel Bonesteel, Sara Debab, Frank McStay, Robert S. Saunders, Health Affairs Forefront) comments “...In this analysis, which builds on two previous reports from the authors on opportunities to strengthen the model, we synthesize what these two evidence streams tell us about model progress, highlight areas of alignment and tension between performance metrics and evaluation findings, and identify policy considerations to support ongoing implementation. We draw on performance data, evaluation results, interviews with participants and stakeholders, and prior work engaging ACO REACH participants and experts to identify opportunities for CMS to enhance transparency, support uptake of population-based payments, and continue advancing equity within the ACO framework.” Full