OBJECTIVES: The objectives were to assess the administrative burden of two B-Cell disease modifying therapies (DMTs) (Kesimpta® or Ocrevus®) at MS clinics across Canada to inform a health economics model describing the impact of B-Cell therapy selection.

METHODS: Four MS clinics in different provinces completed a survey on recent (last 12 months) administrative interactions for patients with Relapsing Remitting MS (RRMS) treated with Kesimpta or Ocrevus. The type (i.e., in-person visit or administrative work), number, and duration of interactions were collected. A convenience sample of patients was selected based on most recent clinic interactions, with inclusion criteria applied to obtain a comparable sample of patients on each B-Cell therapy. Survey data were analyzed descriptively and informed model development.

RESULTS: Interactions for 130 patients meeting the inclusion criteria were obtained. About half of patients on each B-Cell therapy were treatment naïve (51% Kesimpta, 52% Ocrevus) and in the maintenance phase of treatment (52% Kesimpta, 51% Ocrevus). Overall, healthcare practitioners (HCPs) experienced 21% fewer total interactions and spent 30% less time on interactions for Kesimpta patients compared to Ocrevus. HCPs completed 26% less administrative work interactions (i.e., calls, emails, faxes, paperwork) for Kesimpta patients, spending 48% less time. Although HCPs attended 36% more in-person visits for Kesimpta patients, these results do not consider in-person visits occurring at infusion centers for Ocrevus patients.

Increasing the proportion of patients on Kesimpta results in fewer hours spent on administrative interactions at clinics. Based on our survey results, the estimated annual time savings is ~70 hours per 100 patients treated with Kesimpta instead of Ocrevus.

CONCLUSIONS: B-Cell therapy choice impacts clinic administrative burden and Kesimpta may offer greater efficiency for Canadian MS clinics. The health economics model can be used to understand the specific impact of increasing the proportion of RRMS patients on Kesimpta on a clinic’s total administrative burden.