Winner
Communicating the value of Abilify in a changing NHS
Summary of work
In today’s cost-sensitive NHS is it possible to maintain formulary access and prescribing of a medicine when the three products with the highest market shares are already off, or coming off patent?
Industry analysts didn’t think so and were predicting the following for the atypical antipsychotic market:*
- A 70 per cent fall in the total value of the global market between 2010 and 2017
- A decline in UK market share from 11 per cent in 2010 to 2 per cent by 2017
- Significant reductions in UK prescribing starting in 2011.
Payers at 24 of the 58 UK mental health Trusts were reviewing their formularies. These reviews had the potential to restrict access to the remaining branded medicines, including Abilify (aripiprazole), on the basis of cost alone.
Bristol-Myers Squibb and Otsuka were facing a significant challenge with limited budgets.
By focusing on a specific group of mental health patients, those with metabolic and cardiovascular risk factors, the Abilify value campaign was able to deliver remarkable results – not just protecting access but growing it. This was done by understanding the stakeholder issues, using a highly targeted approach, clearly defining the group of patients Abilify offers greatest benefit to, and linking al this to the priorities of the payer audience.
* DataMonitor (2010). Pipeline and Commercial Insight: Schizophrenia
Executive summary as submitted
Judges’ comments
"This was a highly focused piece of work, addressing a challenge with an execution that led to sales results. BMS achieved a result that wasn’t expected, with an impressive sales increase in the face of rampant generic competition."
