NorthWest Biotherapeutics Inc (NWBO)

[antihama]

Pfizer's answer to the $64 question regarding combo pricing

And immunotherapy cocktails are the coming thing, with dozens of combo trials testing multiple permutations. Putting targeted meds alongside immuno-oncology treatments is part of that mix, and Barrett sees a big role for Inlyta there. “[W]e expect it to be the preferred agent for combination,” she said, going on to add, “[W]e do believe that ultimately we'll win in renal cell carcinoma.”

Pfizer also has a laundry list of other potential combos, which brought up a question from UBS analyst Marc Goodman: What about pricing? If each drug costs, say, $100,000, then would three together in a cocktail cost $300,000?

“Absolutely no,” Barrett said.

Down the road, as these cocktails hit the market, Barrett expects payers to move away from their current rebate focus and toward different pricing models. And Pfizer will be thinking of ways to price combination meds that will make its own cocktails competitive.

How? The company has multiple types of immune-therapies under its own roof, Barrett pointed out, unlike some other companies that are relying on cocktails that combine their own meds with candidates from other companies. “And that's why I think we feel really good about our future and where we are,” she said. Pfizer will “be able to have access to multiple medicines and be able to be in a unique position to price them.”

Meanwhile, U.S. payers will have to adjust their thinking somehow, she said, pointing out that single-payer systems overseas have a longer-term outlook on how drugs are used. In the U.S., patients move from plan to plan every two years on average, she said. So they’re more focused on their drug spending year by year, rather than what drug spending can deliver in savings over the long term.

http://www.fiercepharma.com/pharma/pfizer-cancer-chief-touts-up-and-coming-portfolio-sees-pricing-advantage-immunotherapies?utm_medium=nl&utm_source=internal&mrkid=899996&mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiWXpnek1tSTNaV00wWkRJNSIsInQiOiJrV1RSWXkwb2szOGY4UDZJWE5UYVhcL3VEXC9IeUhrRll4bDdRQVFuOU5GbFI3UjRsM1pna2MyV2g0NWpTK242MVVhWVNJVXVRSEZHTVwvZjhtS0ErRlwvdDFNczRVYWlFZURnK2pERlY4V2lUa289In0%3D

Sorry Pips, as you may gather, this isn't related to your message