Cigna Corp. said on Aug. 26 the company would now sell health insurance plans on online marketplaces created by the Affordable Care Act (ACA), popularly known as Obamacare, in three new U.S. states and 93 new counties.
Stephanie Hoeler – SVP, Experience Strategy at TBWA\WorldHealth – explores how the world of medicine should begin to break the binary and the potential leadership role pharma companies, healthcare advertising agencies, and HCPs can take.
Children growing up watching The Wizard of Oz remember the first time they saw little Toto pull the curtain back, exposing the Great and Powerful Oz as just a man. And even though he exhorted, “Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!”—from that day forward, the gig was up. Today, if Toto were to expose how healthcare is paid for in the United States, we would realize that it’s the employer who is “that man behind the curtain.” And although pharmaceutical manufacturers still need to focus their attention on the intermediary companies—like UnitedHealth and Aetna, for example—it is becoming extremely important that they understand the pressure that employers are placing on these companies.
CVS Health Corp. said the company will make it easier for patients with advanced cancer enrolled in some Aetna insurance plans to receive broad genetic gene sequencing tests that can help identify the best drug or treatment for them.
As drug prices fall under increased scrutiny, payers and regulators are targeting some key initiatives that could change the dynamic of pharmacy benefit management over the next 12 months. These emerging trends point to potentially rougher terrain for drugmakers looking to increase market share as payers take a more active role in enforcing formularies.
Aetna and Humana would consider all available options for their proposed $34 billion merger, the two U.S. health insurers said one day after a court ruled against the deal due to fears it would lower competition.
