title: Switching to less expensive blindness drug could save medicare part B $18 billion over a ten-year period.
abstract: The biologic drugs bevacizumab and ranibizumab have revolutionized treatment of diabetic macular edema and neovascular age-related macular degeneration, leading causes of blindness. Ophthalmologic use of these drugs has increased and now accounts for roughly one-sixth of the Medicare Part B drug budget. The two drugs have similar efficacy and potentially minor differences in adverse-event rates; however, at $2,023 per dose, ranibizumab costs forty times more than bevacizumab. Using modeling methods, we predict ten-year (2010-20) population-level costs and health benefits of using bevacizumab and ranibizumab. Our results show that if all patients were treated with the less expensive bevacizumab instead of current usage patterns, savings would amount to $18 billion for Medicare Part B and nearly $5 billion for patients. With an additional $6 billion savings in other health care expenses, the total savings would be almost $29 billion. Altering patterns of use with these therapies by encouraging bevacizumab use and hastening approval of biosimilar therapies would dramatically reduce spending without substantially affecting patient outcomes.
authors.affiliation: David Hutton (dwhutton@umich.edu) is an assistant professor of Health Management and Policy at the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hutton
authors.affiliation: Paula Anne Newman-Casey is an assistant professor in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at the University of Michigan Medical School.
authors.forename: Paula Anne
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Newman-Casey
authors.affiliation: Mrinalini Tavag is a graduate of the Department of Health Management and Policy at the University of Michigan.
authors.forename: Mrinalini
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tavag
authors.affiliation: David Zacks is an associate professor in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at the University of Michigan Medical School.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Zacks
authors.affiliation: Joshua Stein is an assistant professor in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at the University of Michigan Medical School.
authors.forename: Joshua
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Stein
mesh_terms: D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000191:economics* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000068258:Bevacizumab; D001766:Blindness / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000191:economics*; D017046:Cost Savings / Q000191:economics*; D003930:Diabetic Retinopathy / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000191:economics*; D016527:Drug Costs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D057915:Drug Substitution / Q000191:economics*; D006801:Humans; D008268:Macular Degeneration / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000191:economics*; D008269:Macular Edema / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000191:economics*; D016345:Medicare Part B / Q000191:economics*; D000069579:Ranibizumab; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; D000068258:Bevacizumab; D000069579:Ranibizumab
keywords: Cost of Health Care; Health Economics