4 Commercial Practices Shaping the Future of Life Sciences
Developing a new drug is an incredibly costly, time-consuming, and high-risk venture. In the 12-15 years it takes to move a prescription therapy from discovery into the marketplace, pharmaceutical manufacturers invest an average of $2.3 billion.
Given the considerable investment to make the drug available to patients, it's critical for commercial teams to develop a go-to-market model that delivers an appropriate return on investment (ROI). However it’s evident that conventional strategies are waining in their effectiveness – according to Deloitte, biopharma companies realized a mere 1.2% ROI in 2022, am 82% drop from 2021.
With the BioPharma industry in the midst of a period of significant market pressures, including pricing and access challenges and growing consumer demands, manufacturers must consider new, innovative commercial models to ensure financial sustainability. This is supported by recent research that top biopharma companies have generated $1 billion in incremental revenue by modernizing their commercial practices. Here are four commercialization strategies that offer sustainable value in today's complex drug channel.
1. Utilizing digital channels to engage stakeholders
Digital channels modernize the patient experience, amplify sales and marketing efforts, and present opportunities for operational efficiencies. From the point of prescription to enabling therapy adherence, digital processes reduce friction in the medication access journey while offering savings.
For example, embedding Hub enrollment within the clinical workflow of HCPs improves the likelihood that they will prescribe your therapy, and patients will utilize support services that help them be successful. Simplifying this typically cumbersome process improves patient outcomes by ensuring that they use programs that can reduce out-of-pocket costs and accelerate therapy initiation.
Other advantages that come with adopting digital channels include:
Earning a better return on investment from patient service programs
Addressing prior authorization challenges effectively and efficiently
Making the most of manufacturer-sponsored financial assistance
2. Leveraging data to make informed decisions
The quality of insights that can be derived from data along the prescription access journey present a tremendous opportunity to enhance commercial strategies that can deliver brand value. A McKinsey analysis found that advanced analytics can improve the EBITDA of pharmaceutical companies by anywhere from 45 to 75 percent enabling greater investment in programs that can improve patient outcomes.
Real-time insights into the patient journey – from the provider visit to prescription processing to the patient receiving their medication from the pharmacy – help manufacturers uncover and respond to friction points to help them reach their commercial objectives. By implementing feedback loops, manufacturers dynamically glean data & insights to positively impact patient access to their brands.
3. Taking a gross-to-net lens to patient Hub services
Market and economic realities increasingly challenge life science companies' efforts to meet forecasts and drive sustainable growth of their novel therapies – with patient access and gross-to-net (GTN) margins taking a hit. Consequently, GTN should be guiding prospective commercial strategies and fund allocations.
With as many as 7 out of 10 patients on newly launched specialty drugs using a patient assistance program subsidized by the manufacturer, companies must analyze the financial implications and evaluate the balance between supporting patients and managing their GTN performance to sustain the long-term viability of their brands.
Check out our whitepaper, “Optimizing Patient Access for Sustainable Growth: A playbook for life sciences manufacturers,” to learn more about this approach.
4. Implementing integrated commercialization strategies
A fragmented commercialization approach diminishes a manufacturer’s ability to streamline access and deliver a positive patient experience. Conversely, deeper integration with providers, wholesalers, payers, pharmacies, patient services programs, and fulfillment minimizes interruptions to medication access.
For example, integrated telemedicine models offer consumers the modern experience they want while providing manufacturers greater control over the entire medication access journey. And working with a hub partner with an integrated dispensing network can deliver significantly higher health plan coverage, enabling faster, more affordable patient access to branded therapies. The deeper the integration with the value chain, the greater the opportunity manufacturers have to positively influence outcomes and prove value to payers.
Building sustainable value begins here
In an era where developing a new drug is an arduous journey, the imperative for pharmaceutical manufacturers to rethink their commercialization strategies has never been more evident. The good news is that forward-thinking companies can build sustainable value by embracing modernized commercial practices.
By partnering with Phil, your company can navigate the complex drug channel with confidence. As an end-to-end commercialization platform, PhilRx helps specialty-lite brands protect their GTN margins while unlocking patient access to maximize reimbursement. Life sciences companies access a nationwide partner pharmacy network designed to help patients receive prescribed therapy quickly, conveniently, and affordably. Phil automates prior authorizations and ensures manufacture-driven copay coupon utilization. Real-time insights give our manufacturer partners strategic visibility across the prescription journey.
Check out this resource to discover how Phil can help unlock the unique value of your brand.
