News Item

IntelliQ Health launches new service - Customer Acceptance Analysis

Post-Launch Customer Acceptance Analysis Maximizes New Product Development ROI

IntelliQ Health recently launched a new service that provides a research framework and methdology intended to measure market acceptance of new products and services following their initial introduction.  

IntelliQ Health's Customer Acceptance Analysis is a formal early market feedback mechanism to identify new product and service program deficiencies, provide insight into needed corrective actions and uncover additional market and future product and services opportunities.    Its ultimate objective is to maximize the return on organizations' new product and services development investments.

For more information, please click here for access to IntelliQ Health's Customer Acceptance Analysis White Paper.  

New Generic Pharmaceutical Association (GPhA) Study Shows Huge Savings From Use of Generics During The Last 10 Years

Washington, DC, September 21, 2011

New Study Finds Use of Generic Prescription Drugs Saved Consumers and the U.S. Health Care System $931 Billion Over Past 10 Years

Savings Reached $158 Billion in 2010, Averaging $3 Billion Weekly

The Generic Pharmaceutical Association (GPhA) today released an independently conducted analysis showing that the use of generic prescription drugs in the U.S. has saved consumers and the health care system $931 billion over the last 10 years (2001-2010).

The analysis, conducted for GPhA by the IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics and IMS Health, shows that in 2010 alone generic drug use generated nearly $158 billion in savings, an average of $3 billion every week.

“These findings could not have come at a more critical time,” said Ralph G. Neas, GPhA President and CEO. “The analysis shows beyond doubt that savings achieved through the use of safe and effective generics deliver a huge win to consumers looking to hold down their health care costs. Moreover, the savings provide a winning solution to those in Washington trying to address the sustainability of the nation’s health care system, as well as the national economy.”

Noting that the Congressional Budget Office recently pointed to the rising cost of health care as the greatest threat to our fiscal future, Neas said, “It is significant that the savings delivered by generics are system-wide and not the result of simply cost shifting. As such, the savings gained through the use of generic medicines benefit both the public and private sectors.”

The analysis also pointed to the extraordinary savings delivered by newer generics, those introduced since 2001. The majority of these new generics entered the market before the patents on the counterpart brand drugs expired thanks to patent litigation settlements between the generic and brand companies. “A ban on patent settlements would have the unintended consequence of delaying patient access to lower cost generics, costing consumers, payers and the government billions of dollars,” Neas said.

The study also reports that the Medicaid system could save more than $1.3 billion annually by increasing generic use by just two percentage points. Nationally, generics account for only about 70 percent of total Medicaid prescriptions. But outside of Medicaid, generics account for 78 percent of all prescriptions. With Medicaid paying on average 80 percent less for a generic prescription compared to the brand drug, federal and state governments could save more than $600 million for each one percentage point increase in generic usage.

“When the generic drug industry was established by Congress in 1984, it was predicted that generic drugs would save our country $1 billion a year,” Neas said. “As this analysis shows, the savings generated by generic prescription drugs are now three times that amount every week. As a result, millions of Americans are able to get the medicine they need at an affordable cost."

GPhA represents the manufacturers and distributors of finished generic pharmaceuticals, manufacturers and distributors of bulk pharmaceutical chemicals, and suppliers of other goods and services to the generic industry. Generic pharmaceuticals fill 78 percent of the prescriptions dispensed in the U.S. but consume just 25 percent of the total drug spending. Additional information is available at gphaonline.org.

IMS Report Shows Slowing Growth on Prescription Spending

Cincinnati, Ohio, May 12, 2011

In a recent report entitled, The Use of Medicines in the United States - Review of 2010 the IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics reports slowing growth of spending on prescription medicines and declines in doctor office visits and new chronic therapy treatment intiations. More specfically. . .

• Overall, spending on prescription medicines in the US in 2010 increased by 2.3% to $307 Billion, considerably lower than the 5.1% spending growth during 2009.
• The number of visits to doctors' offices declined by 4.2% in 2010, while new therapy starts declined by 3.4 million during 2010 versus 2009.

IMS attributes these declines and slowing spending growth to a convergence of factors, including continued high unemployment levels, more people losing their healthcare coverage, greater use of generics, rising healthcare costs, and more careful healthcare spending.

Other noteable findings:

• The average patient co-payment declined 20 cents to $10.73 in 2010 primarily due to the growing use of generics, which now account for 78% of all retail prescriptions.
• Consumers are increasingly turning to chain drugstores for their prescriptions. increasing their share by 0.5%.

For additional insights about the changing healthcare landscape and its impact on the use of medicines, simply This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and we will send a FREE copy of the report to you.

Contact:

Bert Kollaard, MS
Vice President Client Services
IntelliQ Research & Strategy
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Tel:(513) 605-3633

Who Will Control the Patient-Centered Medical Home?

Cincinnati, Ohio, June 26, 2011

A spirited debate has been ongoing for a number of years about the roles of medical professionals in the patient-centered medical home (PCMH). While the conventional wisdom and current practice has had the lead role reserved for primary care physicians, other medical professionals, and especially advanced practice nurses, along with their advocacy groups, are increasingly challenging the status quo as they jockey for position and a more significant role in the medical home.

Although the patient-centered medical home concept has been around for some time, it has regained visibility since the implementation of the Affordable Care Act of 2010. Originally mandated by the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 and the Medical Homes Act of 2007, the PCMH is about understanding a patient’s needs, coordinating and providing evidence-based preventative, acute and chronic care through shared decision making between the patient and a multi-disciplinary team of providers.

Most of the medical home demonstration and pilot projects under way today are physician-led and most physicians, along with the four biggest physician advocacy organizations, prefer to keep it this way. While other medical professionals, such as nurse practitioners, pharmacists, social and case workers are certainly welcome to be part of the care team, the position of physicians is that PCMH’s should be physician directed and led.

In light of the significant shortage of primary care physicians expected in 15 years, the efforts by other medical professionals and especially nurse practitioners (NPs), advanced practice nurses and pharmacists, to secure more significant roles in PCMH’s appear to make good sense. Furthermore, with the contributions of NPs, advanced practice nurses, and pharmacists in the delivery of accessible, affordable, high quality and safe care well documented, the time might be right to give serious consideration to exploring expanded roles for them as primary care providers and leads in the PCMH model.

As a start, medical home demonstration projects should allow for nurse practitioner-, advanced practice nurse-, and perhaps pharmacist-led PCMH’s utilizing the same standards and scoring mechanisms applied to physician led PCMHs. The outcomes and results will speak for themselves. It is interesting to see progress in this direction being made at the state level, especially in states where nurse practitioners are already authorized to provide independent primary care. In addition, adjustments in the definition of medical homes as “clinician-,” rather than physician-led also open the door to this possibility.

For more information about the latest patient-centered medical home developments, please contact Bert Kollaard at 513-605-3633 or via email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

About IntelliQ Health

IntelliQ Health is a full service market research and intelligence consulting firm exclusively focused on the healthcare industry. Since 1983, IntelliQ Health has completed well over 4,000 studies across the healthcare continuum of care. During this time, we have helped countless healthcare organizations improve and accelerate their most critical decisions with meaningful information and actionable insights.