02.02.19 -- Employers & Biosimilars: Closing The Gap

Physicians and patients have been the target of a majority of the biosimilar education initiatives thus far in the U.S. But the employer holds just as much power in the healthcare system. In the following articles, I present interviews with employer organization experts about the the role biosimilars can play in negotiations with employers’ healthcare partners, as well as how the biosimilar industry can best reach these critical stakeholders.

Anna Rose Welch

Editor

Matt Harman of Employers Health shares his perspective on employers' excitement level over biosimilars and what knowledge they need most. As Harman emphasized, there are a number of ways the organization has partnered — and could still — with manufacturers to share the news about biosimilars.

In addition to learning about the biosimilar-related activities National Alliance of Healthcare Purchasers Coalition has implemented recently, I picked one expert's brain about which educational strategies would best reach employers during this age when the entire U.S. healthcare system is under the microscope.

One employer group expert provides a good look at the current relationships between employers and those assisting them with their healthcare decisions, as well as how the Pacific Business Group on Health has set out to create a biosimilar educational and market push initiative.

Using what The Coalition’s President and CEO Troy Ross has termed “3D thinking” through the creation of data mapping, employers are gaining access to information they’ve never been privy to before that will enable them to identify savings opportunities and better design their benefits — which could mean increased traction for biosimilars.