Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Cigna, Novartis Reach Pay-For-Performance Deal For Heart Drug
The Wall Street Journal: Novartis Reaches Entresto Pay-For-Performance Deals With Cigna, Aetna
Cigna Corp. and Aetna Inc. have reached agreements for heart drug Entresto with Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG that tie pricing to patient outcomes. Such pay-for-performance deals, which set pricing on certain drugs based on how well they work for certain patients, have been spurred by concerns about increasingly high prices for some medicines. (Stynes, 2/9)
Reuters: Insurer Cigna And Novartis Set Heart-Drug Price Based On Health Outcome
U.S.-based health insurer Cigna Corp and Novartis AG have agreed on a performance-based price for the Swiss drugmaker's new heart drug, Entresto, Cigna said on Monday. The agreement is one of the few performance-based deals that have been made public by drugmakers and U.S. managed-care companies, who say they have been having more discussions about linking price to health outcome in order to cut unneeded drug spending. (2/9)
The Wall Street Journal: How A Sanofi Diabetes Bet Went Wrong
The history of inhalable insulins for diabetes care is full of disappointments, but Sanofi SA thought a new approach would turn all of that around. It was wrong. The French drugmaker last month ended a licensing pact with MannKind Corp. for the rights to sell the insulin inhaler Afrezza, saying that despite substantial marketing efforts, the product was unlikely to reach even the lowest patient levels anticipated. Sanofi’s bet on inhaled insulin shows the strain pharmaceutical chiefs are under to acquire innovative products when their own pipelines aren’t delivering. (Roland and Bisserbe, 2/9)
The Wall Street Journal: Regeneron: Good Results, Great Expectations
Despite some bumps in the road, the growth story is still intact at Regeneron Pharmaceuticals. Trouble is, a solid outlook isn’t enough to push shares higher in this unforgiving market. Regeneron reported fourth-quarter revenue of $1.1 billion and adjusted earnings per share of $2.83 on Tuesday. Both grew solidly while also falling short of expectations. (Grant, 2/9)
