OBJECTIVES

To predict the impact of the listing of lanreotide acetate in the national reimbursement drug list (NRDL) on the Chinese health insurance expenditures, and provide references for decision-making.

METHODS

A budget impact model with a time horizon of five years (2020 to 2024) was established. Epidemiological data, treatment pathway parameters, and market share data of acromegaly therapy were derived from national statistics, published literature, expert surveys, and (or) market sales data. The drug cost information was retrieved from NRDL’s payment standards or manufacturer. The incremental aggregate budget impact per year was calculated.

RESULTS

Base-case analysis showed that from 2020 to 2024, relevant pharmacotherapy expenditures would be decreased by 0.1442, 0.2895, 0.5812, 0.8752 and 1.1713 million CNY respectively if lanreotide acetate was reimbursed for acromegaly treatment. Accordingly, expenditures of the health insurance fund would be decreased by 0.1003, 0.2014, 0.4044, 0.6089 and 0.8150 million CNY. Sensitivity analysis was carried out on the unit cost of lanreotide acetate, diagnostic/treatment rates, annual incidence of acromegaly, market share and discount or not. The results indicated that the base-case analysis was robust.

CONCLUSIONS

The introduction of lanreotide acetate to Chinese NRDL for acromegaly patients would have a cost-saving budget impact on the overall expenditure and optimize healthcare security resource allocation.