The high cost of Sovaldi, a breakthrough treatment for hepatitis C, has been garnering significant media attention. (See my previous post.) Now Express Scripts has taken that cost and extrapolated it to forecast what state governments might end up spending on new hepatitis C therapies for patients on Medicaid or in prison. (See the Express Scripts report.)
If the states were to cover all current Medicaid and prison hepatitis C patients with the new Sovaldi treatment and companion drug, ribavirin, the projected costs could be as high as $55.2 billion. While this news does not specifically apply to employer groups, it certainly gives employers a glimpse into the issue as they try to manage this disease within their own employee populations.
For more information on Sovaldi and other anticipated hepatitis C treatments in the pipeline, Lockton’s Pharmacy Analytics Practice can help. Please contact your Lockton Account Team.