Why FormularyDecisions® is the right choice for enterprise biopharma payer engagement
By AmerisourceBergen
Biopharma companies looking to maximize their engagement with healthcare decision-makers (HCDMs) are finding that digital channels add considerable synergy to traditional face-to-face meetings and payer marketing initiatives. In fact, a field survey by the Xcenda division of AmerisourceBergen found that 80 percent of HCDMs think that digital payer engagement is essential.
FormularyDecisions® was designed specifically to meet the growing payer demand for real-time product information. The secure, online platform facilitates the exchange of information between biopharma companies and the formulary decision-making community. FormularyDecisions provides detailed product information, ranging from pre-approval to post-launch. HCDMs and other formulary stakeholders utilize the site to access a repository of evidence-based scientific resources, research products, and provide insights on how a product's perceived value impacts formulary placement.
Benefits of using FormularyDecisions
FormularyDecisions enables biopharma companies to engage with HCDMs during the entire lifecycle of a product. It represents over 269M covered lives, including over 95 percent commercial, 90 percent Medicare, and over 50 percent Medicaid.
Biopharma companies benefit from using FormularyDecisions by enabling HCDMs to have on-demand access to product information. Given the security of the platform, FormularyDecisions also offers a compliant and streamlined way to support pre-approval information exchange (PIE) and to share healthcare economic information (HCEI) with payers. At the same time, the site provides biopharma companies unparalleled market intelligence about everything from competitors to end-user experiences. Key benefits include:
Increasing engagement: The FormularyDecisions platform facilitates engagement with the payer community, helps to build a stronger level of awareness about brands and products, and creates opportunities to build relationships with payers.
Driving awareness: HCDMs increasingly rely on digital channels for up-to-date product information. FormularyDecisions supplements traditional channels, enabling biopharma researchers, executives, and marketers to identify and connect with key healthcare decision-makers.
Gaining payer market insights: The FormularyDecisions database provides biopharma companies with unparalleled insights into how HCDMs perceive their product. Direct, real-time product feedback from HCDMs enables biopharma companies to better understand payer perceptions and to refine both products and product marketing for optimal results in the marketplace.
Reach payers like never before
Competitive advantages for biopharma companies
Payers are increasingly reviewing products well in advance of launch and expect engagement from biopharma companies. FormularyDecisions enables biopharma companies to reach healthcare decision-makers early in a product's lifecycle. This facilitates access to reliable product information, and helps payers make informed decisions.
Product development and sales are becoming more collaborative than ever before. FormularyDecisions enables biopharma companies to reach the widest possible audience of HCDMs. Moreover, the bi-directional flow of information fosters ongoing engagement. The result is a steady stream of market research data and insights that can help to improve products and marketing.
While some biopharma companies try to build their own online product channels, FormularyDecisions provides plug-and-play access to a large community of qualified healthcare decision-makers. Larger companies also benefit from standardizing otherwise siloed products and product marketing teams on a common platform.
FormularyDecisions levels the playing field for smaller companies, who often use it as their primary engagement mechanism for payers. In one case study, Xcenda found that a small biotech firm was able to outcompete a Fortune 500 firm by taking advantage of full access to the FormularyDecisions platform.1 The biotech firm generated more payer customer connections and facilitated greater engagement with its brand than its larger biopharma competitor.
Customized product marketing solutions
Because every biopharma company has unique needs, the FormularyDecisions platform is highly customizable. Enterprise users often have five or more products on the site at any given time. The number of products, user licenses, and platform modules used by a manufacturer depends on the specific needs and preferences of each company and their portfolio.
Three key components of the FormularyDecisions platform are the Resource Center, eDossier, and Insights Dashboard:
Resource Center: The Resource Center is a digital repository enabling companies to make all of their supporting documents related to a particular product available to the entire FormularyDecisions community. This makes product information readily available to HCDMs, improves brand and product visibility, and helps facilitate product evaluation and feedback.
eDossier: The eDossier gives payers access to a company's complete product dossier. HCDMs can review important information, provide feedback, and have the option to engage directly with the manufacturer. The system tracks HCDM engagement and provides analytics related to their activities.
Insights Dashboard: One of the most valuable features on the FormularyDecisions portal is the Insights Dashboard, which includes metrics on payer activity and on how payers perceive products, visible only to the manufacturer subscriber. This includes comparison rankings between a subscribing company's product and competitors’ products.
Strategic support
While the platform continues to offer a la carte product subscriptions that are primarily self-service, an Enterprise Subscription provides a full spectrum of wraparound support from a dedicated team of Xcenda’s experienced biopharma experts. This includes strategic consulting and pull through to help biopharma companies optimize their use of the platform and to develop strategic initiatives that are consistent across multiple products.
White glove service is an added value of enterprise-level participation on the FormularyDecisions platform. It is customized to meet the specific needs of each manufacturer and product. Support can vary widely based on the needs of the manufacturer, but common activities include developing an HCDM engagement strategy, generating communication materials for internal or field utilization, ad hoc reporting, and creative support for materials loaded onto the platform.
Ultimately, FormularyDecisions fills a unique niche in the healthcare ecosystem by enabling digital payer engagement. This platform should be part of an omni-channel payer engagement strategy that gives biopharma companies access to a highly qualified community of payers that are actively looking for information such as real-world evidence, clinical guidelines, and patient utilization projections. Giving healthcare decision-makers online access to the evidence and resources they need is a surefire way to maintain a competitive edge.
Reference
- Gaining payer attention through digital innovation. AmerisourceBergen. 20 Sept 2020. Accessed 11 July 2022. Available online at https://www.xcenda.com/insights/case-study-gaining-payer-attention-through-digital-innovation