6 May 2018 - Varying drug prices by indication could be an important value-based strategy in oncology, where multiple indications are becoming the rule. But will administrative costs offset any benefit? And legal and regulatory obstacles could get in the way.

Cancer treatment is advancing rapidly but at eye-popping prices. Six-figure oncology drugs are increasingly common, necessitating new approaches that will bring the drugs back into the orbit of affordability.

The notion that drug payment based on value rather than volume could help reduce drug costs has been percolating for years. Up to now, this most often has taken the form of outcomes-based contracts that tie clinical outcomes to payer rebates and discounts. From 2015 through early 2017, commercial payers and pharmaceutical manufacturers announced 16 outcomes-based agreements, according to a tally in March 2017 by PhRMA, the industry’s trade association.

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