Medicine Price Surveys, Analyses and Comparisons establishes guidelines for the study and implementation of pharmaceutical price surveys, analyses, and comparisons. Its contributors evaluate price survey literature, discuss the accessibility and reliability of data sources, and provide a checklist and training kit on conducting price surveys, analyses, and comparisons. Their investigations survey price studies while accounting for the effects of methodologies and explaining regional differences in medicine prices. They also consider policy objectives such as affordable access to medicines and cost-containment as well as options for improving the effectiveness of policies. - Provides guidance for planning and implementing pharmaceutical pricing policies and systems - Reviews external price referencing systems - Explains common baselines for interpreting price surveys - Defines pharmaceutical price terminology and nomenclature

Thanks to remarkable advances in modern health care attributable to science, engineering, and medicine, it is now possible to cure or manage illnesses that were long deemed untreatable. At the same time, however, the United States is facing the vexing challenge of a seemingly uncontrolled rise in the cost of health care. Total medical expenditures are rapidly approaching 20 percent of the gross domestic product and are crowding out other priorities of national importance. The use of increasingly expensive prescription drugs is a significant part of this problem, making the cost of biopharmaceuticals a serious national concern with broad political implications. Especially with the highly visible and very large price increases for prescription drugs that have occurred in recent years, finding a way to make prescription medicinesâ€"and health care at largeâ€"more affordable for everyone has become a socioeconomic imperative. Affordability is a complex function of factors, including not just the prices of the drugs themselves, but also the details of an individual's insurance coverage and the number of medical conditions that an individual or family confronts. Therefore, any solution to the affordability issue will require considering all of these factors together. The current high and increasing costs of prescription drugsâ€"coupled with the broader trends in overall health care costsâ€"is unsustainable to society as a whole. Making Medicines Affordable examines patient access to affordable and effective therapies, with emphasis on drug pricing, inflation in the cost of drugs, and insurance design. This report explores structural and policy factors influencing drug pricing, drug access programs, the emerging role of comparative effectiveness assessments in payment policies, changing finances of medical practice with regard to drug costs and reimbursement, and measures to prevent drug shortages and foster continued innovation in drug development. It makes recommendations for policy actions that could address drug price trends, improve patient access to affordable and effective treatments, and encourage innovations that address significant needs in health care.

In recent years, high prices of pharmaceutical products have posed challenges in high- and low-income countries alike. In many instances, high prices of pharmaceutical products have led to significant financial hardship for individuals and negatively impacted on healthcare systems' ability to provide population-wide access to essential medicines. Pharmaceutical pricing policies need to be carefully planned, carried out, and regularly checked and revised according to changing conditions. Strong, well-thought-out policies can guide well-informed and balanced decisions to achieve affordable access to essential health products. This guideline replaces the 2015 WHO guideline on country pharmaceutical pricing policies, revised to reflect the growing body of literature since the last evidence review in 2010. This update also recognizes country experiences in managing the prices of pharmaceutical products.

Encyclopedia of Pharmacy Practice and Clinical Pharmacy, Three Volume Set covers definitions, concepts, methods, theories and applications of clinical pharmacy and pharmacy practice. It highlights why and how this field has a significant impact on healthcare. The work brings baseline knowledge, along with the latest, most cutting-edge research. In addition, new treatments, algorithms, standard treatment guidelines, and pharmacotherapies regarding diseases and disorders are also covered. The book's main focus lies on the pharmacy practice side, covering pharmacy practice research, pharmacovigilance, pharmacoeconomics, social and administrative pharmacy, public health pharmacy, pharmaceutical systems research, the future of pharmacy, and new interventional models of pharmaceutical care. By providing concise expositions on a broad range of topics, this book is an excellent resource for those seeking information beyond their specific areas of expertise. This outstanding reference is essential for anyone involved in the study of pharmacy practice. Provides a ‘one-stop’ resource for access to information written by world-leading scholars in the field Meticulously organized, with articles split into three clear sections, it is the ideal resource for students, researchers and professionals to find relevant information Contains concise and accessible chapters that are ideal as an authoritative introduction for non-specialists and readers from the undergraduate level upwards Includes multimedia options, such as hyperlinked references and further readings, cross-references and videos

Towards a better understanding of how medicines are used in society Drug Utilization Research (DUR) is a discipline which combines aspects of pharmacotherapy, epidemiology, and health services research into an interdisciplinary set of methods for analyzing and assessing the prescribing, dispensing and consumption of medicines. It combines both qualitative and quantitative approaches to facilitate the safe and effective use of pharmaceuticals. Drug Utilization Research: Methods and Applications provides a comprehensive introduction to this discipline, prepared by an international team of authors with broad experience in numerous fields. Now reorganized and updated to reflect the latest research and global challenges, it is an indispensable resource for understanding the use of pharmaceuticals. Readers of the second edition of Drug Utilization Research will find: New chapters on methods, including more hands-on guidance on how to plan and conduct different types of drug utilization A section on specific applications in areas such as psychotropics, opioids, cancer drugs, antibacterials, and cardiovascular drugs A new section with case studies illustrating applications of DUR in different continents Detailed treatment of subjects including DUR and health policy, DUR in specific populations, and many more Drug Utilization Research is ideal for epidemiologists, pharmacists, physicians, nurses and others interested in drug use and its outcomes.

Medicines are vital in improving patient health outcomes and pharmaceutical policy is a fundamental component of any health system. However, the global pharmaceutical policy is ever-evolving and data and quality ‘research-based information’ in this field are scarce. This book fills this gap and provides up-to-date empirical information and evidence-based synthesis. It focuses on pertinent key issues in global pharmaceutical policy including medicines safety, generic medicines, pharmaceutical supply chain, medicines financing, access and affordability of medicines, rational use of medicines, pharmacy health services research and access to vaccines and biological products. Featuring policy case studies from varied countries such as Mexico, Russia, China, Kyrgyzstan, and Pakistan, this book comprises a valuable and comprehensive resource for students, funders, policymakers, academics, and researchers interested in this field.

This internationally authored textbook demystifies the complexities that health systems pose in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.