Amgen announced a novel multi-year collaboration with Magellan Rx Management, the pharmacy benefit management division of Magellan Health, that will leverage each company’s capabilities and resources to identify clinical gaps for some of the healthcare system’s most difficult-to-treat diseases. Based on Amgen and Magellan’s extensive expertise in complex areas of health and specialty populations, the initial projects will focus on improving patient outcomes for the treatment of osteoporosis and migraine. These projects mark Amgen’s first value-based collaboration with a pharmacy benefit manager (PBM).
“Amgen’s collaboration with Magellan Rx demonstrates our commitment to cultivating deeper, more meaningful relationships with PBMs, moving beyond the typical transactional agreements towards a model that truly improves care for patients while at the same time lowering costs,” said Peter Juhn, M.D., vice president of Global Value-Based Partnerships at Amgen. “This relationship creates a nexus of capabilities between Amgen and Magellan Rx. Together, we can drive innovative solutions to manage the fastest-growing high-cost areas of healthcare.”
Amgen and Magellan Rx’s osteoporosis project will aim to improve disease management in patients following a bone fracture. The likelihood of a second fracture in these osteoporosis patients increases three to five times, but only a quarter are evaluated and treated. Importantly, the project will also help determine if an individualized program to identify high-risk osteoporosis patients and intervene with resources and information will lead to better health outcomes, and consequently reduce costs for the healthcare system.
The Magellan Rx team will contribute resources, including teaching patients how to care for fractures, the risks of not taking medication as prescribed, and of changes they can make to their lifestyle to minimize future fractures. Resources will also include education for healthcare providers to help them identify the obstacles that prevent patients from optimally managing their condition and treatment plan, as well as tools to help providers educate their patients on the critical aspects of their condition and care.
Amgen and Magellan Rx also share an interest in understanding the unmet needs of people living with migraines and finding opportunities to improve the treatment experience, especially non-opioid alternatives. Currently, the financial and clinical burdens of this disease are not well understood by payers and employers, despite the fact that U.S. employers lose an estimated $11 billion because of migraine each year, largely due to missed work days and lost productivity.
Magellan Method, Magellan Rx’s innovation division, will work with its employer and payer customers to gain real-world patient insights around migraine management, including the cost of migraine, gaps in treatment and opportunities to improve care. These insights will help inform the development of educational materials for employers, payers and patients around the burden of migraines to support improvements in patient outcomes and the utilization of treatment resources.
“We’re collaborating to evaluate the impact of interventions in patients with migraine or osteoporosis,” said Steve Michurski, senior vice president of Trade Relations at Magellan Rx. “We have a unique testing opportunity that can offer real-world evidence. This relationship combines our collective capabilities and resources to create value and insights for patients and providers across healthcare systems.”