WellPoint to roll out reference price-based benefit design for commercial clients

Sarepta continues to work with regulators to complete the safety label update for Elevidys, and they are discussing an approach for risk mitigation for non-ambulatory patients.

In this week's episode of Tuning Into The C-Suite podcast, MHE's Briana Contreras chatted with David Calabrese, R.Ph, MHP, who is senior vice president and chief pharmacy officer of pharmacy care services company, OptumRx. David is also a member of Managed Healthcare Executives’ Editorial Advisory Board. During the discussion, he shared the OptumRx Quarter 2 Drug Pipeline Insights Report of 2020. Some of the information shared includes the three notable drugs currently being reviewed or those that have been recently approved by the FDA. Also discussed were any interesting industry trends to watch for.

Health policy researcher Geoffrey Joyce argues that only delinking compensation from the list price of a drug will lower drug spending.

Last week, an FDA advisory committee against the risk-benefit profile of Blenrep in combination with other therapies. Regulators and reviewers were concerned about the ocular side effects and dosing and tolerability. The new action date is Oct. 23, 2025.

Sarepta officials said the temporary halt in shipments was done to maintain a productive working relationship with regulators while they address a safety labeling update about the risk of acute liver disease related to Elevidys.