Is disease management the key to market access in Europe?

Abstract

Pharmaceutical companies should not reject disease management initiatives for Europe on the basis that it does not generate an increase in profits, advises Dr Tony Felton, a general practitioner and management consultant for Coopers & Lybrand, UK. He suggests that in today’s increasingly difficult managed-care environment, disease management programmes may be the saviour that drug companies are looking for in terms of maintaining access to important market channels. At PharmEcon ′97 [Paris, France; June 1997], Dr Felton discussed the commercial viability of disease management programmes in Europe, and highlighted the risks associated with not implementing such programmes.