Session (CTI)

Purpose: The Most Favoured Nation (MFN) policy being pursued by the US administration has the potential to influence prices and access for new pharmaceuticals across high income countries. This workshop will identify how MFN is likely to affect access and pricing globally and what European policymakers should do in response. Description: MFN drug pricing aims to anchor US drug prices to those paid in other high income (reference) countries, addressing longstanding concerns that US prices exceed those elsewhere. Commentators have raised concerns that the policy will lead manufacturers to increase prices, or delay or forgo launches in European markets to protect US revenues. In this workshop, we will show how economic models can predict the outcomes of MFN in Europe and inform healthcare policy development. Professor Sullivan will moderate and introduce MFN policy and its motivation from a US perspective [5 minutes]. Iria Alvarez Novoa will provide a pharmaceutical industry perspective on how MFN is expected to change launch sequence decisions in European markets and how manufacturers are preparing [12 minutes]. Professor Sa will show that MFN may lead manufacturers to narrow covered patient populations in Europe—restricting access via coverage even under full insurance—while reducing global revenues unless reference countries adjust pricing rules [12 minutes]. Dr Woods will then show how different policy responses—including changes to cost effectiveness thresholds or other pricing approaches—are likely to influence pricing, innovation, and long term population health outcomes [12 minutes]. The workshop will use real-time polling to ask participants to consider how they would react to MFN as a manufacturer or health system actor and to consider the trade-offs between price, access and long-term innovation. This interactive workshop will be valuable for those involved in pricing and access decisions within industry, and those working on pharmaceutical policy across governments, academia, and health systems.