Research & Insights
The Drug Pricing Lab conducts non-partisan, independent research. We make our work accessible and informative to policymakers and the general audience alike. Browse our featured research or explore our work by article type.
Featured Research
Our featured research highlights our latest and most impactful work.
Featured Research
Pharmaceutical Products and Their Value
Steep increases in prices and spending on prescription drugs in the United States have triggered public outrage and questions about their value.
Value in Health
03/29/2020
Featured Research
Cost Consequences of the 340B Drug Discount Program
Unintended consequences of the 340B drug discount program alter physician prescribing habits, widen the disparity in hospital profits, and increase list prices of drugs to compensate for revenue losses.
JAMA Viewpoint
05/15/2013
Featured Research
Fact Check: Time to Market for New Drugs in U.S.…
Drug prices in the U.S. are highest among developed countries, effectively setting the upper bound for reference prices elsewhere.
Drug Pricing Lab
10/11/2019
Featured Research
Impact of President's Budget and Point of Sale Rebate Proposal…
Milliman analyzes the impact of the proposed rule to implement point of sale rebates in Medicare Part D.
Drug Pricing Lab
03/08/2019
Featured Research
Abandon Biosimilars as Biologics are Natural Monopolies
Biosimilars will not effectively lower the price of biologic drugs after the period of market exclusivity.
HA Blog
04/15/2019
Academic Literature
Academic literature is reviewed by peer experts in a scientific field before it is approved for publication. The acceptance of our opinions and research after this vetting process indicates its relevance to current policies and other important drug and device issues.
Academic Literature
Pharmaceutical Products and Their Value
Steep increases in prices and spending on prescription drugs in the United States have triggered public outrage and questions about their value.
Value in Health
03/29/2020
Academic Literature
Understanding the Rewards of Successful Drug Development: Thinking Inside the…
The ability to charge high prices is only one component of a complex system of risks and rewards that underlies pharmaceutical innovation.
NEJM
01/30/2020
Academic Literature
Medicare Negotiation: A "Too Little" or "Too Late" Framework for…
Recent draft pieces of legislation and regulation take aim at the rising cost of drugs, targeting drugs that claim the largest share of the health care budget and that face limited competition from generics or biosimilars.
NEJM
11/28/2019
Academic Literature
Abandon Biosimilars as Biologics are Natural Monopolies
Biosimilars will not effectively lower the price of biologic drugs after the period of market exclusivity.
HA Blog
04/15/2019
Academic Literature
List Price, Net Price, and the Rebate Caught in the…
Pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), such as Express Scripts, CVS Caremark, and Optum Rx, are some of the larger companies that administer the Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit.
JAMA Viewpoint
03/06/2019
Academic Literature
Expansion of the Medicare 340B Payment Program
As the 340B program expands, it continues to draw national attention.
JAMA Viewpoint
12/11/2018
Academic Literature
The "Netflix Model" of Financing Hepatitis C Treatment
An alternative payment model is proposed to support a population-level payment paradigm.
JAMA Viewpoint
11/20/2018
Academic Literature
Cardiovascular Drugs Not Price Aligned with Value in US
U.S. prices of common cardiovascular drugs are not consistent with the cost-effectiveness evidence.
Health Affairs
08/01/2018
Academic Literature
US Drug Prices And R&D, Take 2: A Reply To…
To answer Health Affairs responses, Peter Bach and Nancy Yu point back to the research, emphasizing the original intent of the conservative R&D cost assumptions.
Health Affairs Blog
07/27/2017
Academic Literature
Prevalence of Off-Label Use and Spending Among Patent-Protected Chemotherapies
The prevalence of off-label anticancer drug use is not well characterized.
JCO
02/19/2013
Business and Popular Press
Our expertise and opinions regarding drug pricing and development are sought by journalists for both Business and Popular Press. Our editorial writings, often in collaboration with other experts, allows us to comment in a broader forum.
Articles
Drop in Cancer Deaths Reflect Failures of Our Society. Really.
Despite declining cancer death rates, the nation still presents societal failures to improve the state of our population's health.
The Boston Globe
02/21/2020
Articles
Dissecting PhRMA's Opposition to H.R. 3 Lower Drug Costs Now…
Dr. Peter Bach responds to PhRMA's stance of opposition to H.R. 3 Lower Drug Costs Now Act of 2019.
STAT News
10/11/2019
Articles
Time to Throw in the Towel on Biosimilars
Peter Bach and Mark Trusheim of MIT Sloan School of Management underscore the drawbacks of Washington's preferred solution to introduce competition for biologics, the biosimilar model.
The Wall Street Journal
08/21/2019
Articles
Mortgaging New Treatments Kicks the Can on High Drug Prices
The launch price for one-time gene therapy Zolgensma presents various implications.
Morning Consult
07/09/2019
Articles
A $475,000 price tag for a new cancer drug: crazy…
Drug Pricing Lab op-ed in STAT News discusses indication-specific pricing of Kymriah.
STAT News
08/31/2017
Articles
Outcomes-Based Drug Contracts Do Not Move Us Closer to Value
What steps are needed to make outcomes-based contracting a value-based approach?
Morning Consult
06/21/2017
Articles
The U.S. Government Should Buy Gilead for $156Bn to Save…
At $500 per pill, buying Gilead could lower hepatitis C drug costs per patient to one-third their current level, making it affordable to rapidly treat the 2.7 million Americans that have HCV.
Forbes
01/17/2017
Articles
Do High Drug Prices Drive Innovation, Or Hurt It?
In a Forbes guest post, Dr. Bach responds to Dr. John LaMattina's criticism of a previous post authored by Dr. Bach.
Forbes: Debate
11/03/2014
Articles
Could High Drug Prices Be Bad for Innovation?
Industry leaders argue that high prices are necessary for innovation, but just how high do prices need to be?
Forbes: Cancer
10/23/2014
Articles
Fact Checking the NYT Fact Check on the Trump Proposal
The Drug Pricing Lab takes issue with The New York Times "Fact Check" on the recent Trump Administration proposal to pilot alternative reimbursement for Part B drugs.
Drug Pricing Lab
Multimedia
We are invited to participate in a variety of media events including lectures, interviews, and academic meetings. These provide another opportunity to explain this complicated issue of drug pricing to different audiences.
Reports
We conduct thorough investigations and studies of related various aspects of drug prices. When concluded, they are published to share our findings with academic, policymakers, and the public.
Reports
Remdesivir Less Expensive for "Government Programs"? Not So Fast.
Two options are proposed if Gilead wishes to offer the discounts to the full array of government programs.
Drug Pricing Lab
07/01/2020
Reports
Blueprints for Indication-Specific Pricing
Several approaches that rewire existing reimbursement conventions as alternatives to facilitate ISP are proposed.
Drug Pricing Lab
05/19/2020
Reports
Fact Check: Time to Market for New Drugs in U.S.…
Drug prices in the U.S. are highest among developed countries, effectively setting the upper bound for reference prices elsewhere.
Drug Pricing Lab
10/11/2019
Reports
Impact of President's Budget and Point of Sale Rebate Proposal…
Milliman analyzes the impact of the proposed rule to implement point of sale rebates in Medicare Part D.
Drug Pricing Lab
03/08/2019
Reports
Overview of Original Subscription Model and Features of LA and…
An overview of the original subscription-based Netflix model proposed and the proposals put forth by Louisiana and Washington.
Drug Pricing Lab
01/29/2019
Reports
DPL Responds to HHS RFI for IPI Drug Pricing Model…
Our response to the Trump administration’s Request for Information on implementing an international pricing index model for Medicare Part B drugs.
Drug Pricing Lab
12/31/2018
Reports
DPL responds to HHS Blueprint (May 16, 2018)
The Drug Pricing Lab responds to the Trump Administration’s Request for Information on lowering drug prices with a summary of our findings.
Drug Pricing Lab
07/16/2018
Reports
Impact of President Trump's Proposed 340B Hospital Eligibility Threshold
Research tells us 9% of hospitals would lose their 340B eligibility under Trump's drug pricing plan. Essentially all are in Medicaid expansion states.
Drug Pricing Lab
05/11/2018
Reports
Does the 6% in Medicare Part B Drug Reimbursement Affect…
Research tells us that policymakers are right to be concerned.
Drug Pricing Lab
05/10/2018
Reports
Copay Assistance: The Epipen Example
What happens when a patient uses a copay coupon?
Drug Pricing Lab
06/06/2017
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