What Trend Do You Expect To Be Big In 2017 – And Why?

A: THE POLITICAL DEBATES ABOUT DRUG PRICING will lead to an increased push for transparency across drug development and marketing. This will also create a lot of debate about exactly what transparency means. Patients and some legislators view this as a way to shame drugmakers into lowering prices so patients’ out of pocket will be lower; by transparency they mean visibility into drug development costs and profitability. Biopharma companies feel insurance company practices unfairly focus patients’ ire on drugs by making drugs more expensive to patients as compared to other medical interventions and services. Biopharma companies also feel the public and legislators don’t understand how PBMs can also benefit from higher drug prices. Biopharma companies, therefore, want greater transparency around insurance and PBM practices. Transparency on its own will not solve the problem of out-of-pocket costs of drugs, but greater transparency would certainly better inform the public debate around real solutions.

RACHEL KING
Rachel is CEO of GlycoMimetics, a publically traded biotechnology company. She has nearly 30 years of experience in various management roles in the biotech and pharmaceutical industries.