The New Health

There is plenty of discussion in the biopharma industry about declining R&D productivity, increasing development costs, diminishing returns on marketing and sales, and lower earnings. And the “patent cliff” that is quickly approaching will only increase pressure on biopharma players. From 2009 through 2014, an estimated $128 billion of branded revenues will lose patent protection and face generic competition. At the same time, funding for the biotech sector remains heavily constricted in a capital-constrained economic environment. 

These challenges are exacerbated by the increasing difficulties in commanding premium pricing for branded drugs and therapies in the absence of demonstrable value over cheaper alternative therapies. In the healthcare economic climate of today, government and private payers — along with managed care organizations — recognize that healthcare expenditures are increasing at an unsustainable pace (often significantly faster than local GDPs) and are seeking to rein in costs while providing greater value to patients. 

Above all else, biopharma must cut the time it takes to get new drugs and therapies through regulatory approval and to peak sales to deliver to patients the most appropriate treatments at optimal value. And, as the industry grapples with these tough challenges, the balance of power continues to shift from biopharma to a new — and very powerful — group of stakeholders who are driving change. In this new environment where patients are exhibiting greater influence and wielding greater power, companies are under pressure to prove the safety of their medicines and at the same time demonstrate their value.

The New Health is Quintiles’ perspective on the fast-morphing world of biopharma, where the rules are changing on all fronts.

The New Health is both the movement toward an ideal state and the destination. It is defined by the challenges that biopharma executives are struggling to resolve, by the expanded stakeholder group, and by the promise of better health for humans through high-quality, accessible products and treatments that enable people to live healthier lives. 

The New Health is not simply a landscape in which faster and cheaper ensures a competitive advantage. It marks a moment in which public health, multi-stakeholder collaboration and access to quality and affordable medicine must be factored into every decision — from how drugs are developed and delivered to assessing their value, and to how they are brought to market as safely and efficiently as possible. 

The New Health presents unmistakable risks for biopharma, yet offers unmatched opportunities for those who can navigate those risks, usher in a new paradigm of drug development and put into operation a more innovative business model.