Value-based management of specialty drugs: practical considerations and implications for pharmacy

Concerns about high and rising drug prices have prompted a call to manage prescription drugs according to their value. Although not all proposals referred to as "value based" are well suited to advance this mission, health plans must select among them under the influence of competing demands and constraints of their market and nonmarket environments. To understand the implications for health policy, we sought to explore how health plans might select among and implement these approaches for specialty pharmacy (SP) under the incentives and barriers that these conditions create.

An experienced research team conducted a qualitative study with Blue Cross Blue Shield health plans interested in implementing value-based SP management.

Plans'objectives, operational strategies, and factors influencing their ability to execute on these strategies were elicited in 3 focus groups.

Four business objectives were identified, centering on spending levels, spending variability, access to new treatments, and evidence generation for new treatments. Supporting operational strategies included increased utilization management (UM), provider and patient engagement, expanded data analytics, and adjustments to staffing models. Factors that influence their ability to act on these strategies include regional and national scale, strength of provider network relationships, disease management capabilities, business and data silos, and potential legislative actions to limit UM.

Health plans' preferences for different forms of SP management may not be aligned with policy objectives, particularly those that advance innovation. Policy makers should consider market and nonmarket factors that influence these preferences, including the need to mitigate spending variability and generate evidence to guide coverage decisions.