About Perspectives by the Leerink Center for Pharmacoeconomics
Welcome to Perspectives, a signature podcast series from the Leerink Center for Pharmacoeconomics. Hosted by Dr. Mel Whittington, a health economist and Head of the Center for Pharmacoeconomics, we will be hearing from individuals across the industry to better understand and appreciate the societal impact of healthcare innovations.
How Does 340B Impact the Economics of a Drug? A 340B 101 with Sabrina Aery
Sabrina Aery, a 340B expert with more than 30 years of experience across hospitals, health plans, pharmaceutical manufacturers, and consulting, joins Perspectives to provide a 340B 101. She discusses the foundations of the program, how it works in practice, and how the program layers into the broader pharmaceutical pricing system. The episode concludes by discussing how the 340B program can impact the economics of a prescription drug and what biotech investors and executives can consider when evaluating potential 340B exposure.
Topics discussed include:
Who qualifies as a 340B covered entity and which patients and drugs may fall within the program
How 340B ceiling prices are determined
How 340B can affect gross-to-net, net price, and revenue forecasting
Three things biotech executives and investors can examine to assess a product’s potential 340B exposure
Whether you work in biotech or simply want to better understand the U.S. drug pricing system, this episode explains 340B and why it matters.
Show links:
Report - BRG - The Size of the 340B Program - October 2026_20260928012221.pdf https://cdn.aglty.io/phrma/Attachments/NewItems/Report%20-%20BRG%20-%20The%20Size%20of%20the%20340B%20Program%20-%20October%202026_20260928012221.pdf
Drug Channels: The 340B Program Hit $100 Billion in 2025: Has It Become Too Big to Reform? https://www.drugchannels.net/2026/07/the-340b-program-hit-100-billion-in.html
https://us01.z.antigena.com/l/5zAdEvJ6249kAjUoMLg7jE7AU6WJvZqrZJR6I8qCLiqVuHr9xbyYoHaNVzbE9G2PHxSkNgWYKuXqTfjYCX8UOCz2i86t8tWD-TR_nlD-fbxqn8BJ~B5BTOrsiZerPBDEsWjCuv75OTqPOOwD14iyqsVoIiFvTsvMEts9rrnqLqDDoJ5WpghU~lfsC6bRs1_nSDIvUudGH-faNYyIu3a7hAsdkY3zT6U
Growth in the 340B Drug Pricing Program
Analysis of 340B modifier usage in Medicare Part B claims - ADVI https://advi.com/insight/analysis-of-340b-modifier-usage-in-medicare-part-b-claims/
Date recorded: October 2, 2026
31 Aug 2026
How Do WAC, AMP, ASP, 340B, and MFP Fit Together? A Branded Drug Pricing 101 with Inma Hernandez
Inma Hernandez, PharmD, PhD, Senior Advisor for Drug Prices at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, joins Perspectives to give an overview of drug pricing regulatory dynamics for branded drugs in the US. The episode is a step-by-step walkthrough of the different prices a branded drug can have in the U.S. and how those prices are established across commercial insurance, Medicaid, Medicare Part B, and Medicare Part D. Inma explains the alphabet soup of WAC, AMP, best price, ASP, and MFP; how rebates and statutory discounts translate list prices into the net prices realized by innovators; and how pricing decisions in one market can spill over into others. The episode then layers in 340B and the drug pricing provisions within the Inflation Reduction Act. Consider this a U.S. Branded Drug Pricing 101 taught by a nationally recognized expert in pharmaceutical pricing and policy with a graphical representation linked below that is worth printing for your desk.
Topics discussed include:
How net prices for branded drugs are established across commercial insurance, Medicaid, Medicare Part B, and Medicare Part D
The differences between WAC, AMP, best price, ASP, and MFP
How commercial rebates can spill over into Medicaid and 340B through best price
How 340B impacts the economics of a drug across different insurance markets
How inflation rebates and Medicare drug price negotiation add another layer to this framework
Graphical Representation Created by Dr. Hernandez: Microsoft PowerPoint - Keynote_OPENING_Inma_ISPOR 2026
https://www.ispor.org/docs/default-source/cti-meeting-21463-documents/40e0099d-fff6-4b98-88ac-481618a5ebd6.pdf?sfvrsn=2d324432_0
3 Aug 2026
Can Health Economics Lead to Better Biotech? A Conversation with Rob Abbott
Rob Abbott, CEO of ISPOR, joins Perspectives to talk about why health economics and outcomes research (HEOR) has become more relevant for biotech founders, executives, and investors. The conversation challenges the common perception that HEOR is primarily a post-approval exercise used to support pricing and reimbursement. Instead, Rob discusses how evidence generation, economic modeling, and value strategy can shape clinical development, inform investment decisions, and strengthen the commercial potential of new therapies. The episode concludes with a discussion of ISPOR's Healthcare Investment Summit that will be held in September 2026 and will convene investors, drug developers, and value strategists to translate HEOR into early-stage investment decisions and drug development.
Topics discussed include:
Two HEOR activities biotech companies should do before Phase III
Four questions investors can ask management teams to gauge commercial opportunity
Novel applications of HEOR and their usefulness for biotech executives and investors
ISPOR's Healthcare Investment Summit and what biotech leaders and investors might get out of attending
Show links: https://www.ispor.org/conferences-education/conferences/upcoming-conferences/ispor-healthcare-investment-summit-2026
8 Jul 2026
What Happens When Drug Pricing Meets Trade Policy? A Conversation with Ron Lanton
Ron Lanton, the Founder and President of Lanton Strategies International, joins Perspectives by the Leerink Center for Pharmacoeconomics to discuss the use of trade mechanisms to address pharmaceutical pricing. Ron provides insight into the growing intersection of pharmaceutical pricing and international trade policy, why recent developments could be significant, and what it could mean for biopharmaceutical companies, investors, and patients.
Topics discussed include:
U.S. Trade Representative’s recent Section 301 investigation into Germany’s drug pricing and reimbursement practices
U.S.-U.K. drug pricing arrangement
Use of trade mechanisms to address pharmaceutical pricing
Implications for biotech investors and executives
8 Jun 2026
Can Clinical Trial Failure Be Insured? A Conversation with Tomas Philipson
Dr. Tomas Philipson, former Acting Chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers and Professor Emeritus at the University of Chicago, joins Perspectives by the Leerink Center for Pharmacoeconomics to discuss a new insurance model he developed that insures biotech investments against clinical trial failure. He explains how this insurance could reshape the way risk is managed in life sciences innovation and could expand access to capital for biotech. The second half of the episode turns to drug pricing policy where Philipson shares his perspectives on current and proposed reforms.
Topics discussed include:
A new insurance model for clinical trial failure
The role of AI in underwriting these insurance policies
Perspectives on the Inflation Reduction Act, Medicare drug price negotiations, and Most Favored Nation pricing
A NATO-style approach to global drug spending
Episode Links:
https://www.mciuw.com/service/clinical-trial-funding-insurance/
8 Jun 2026
Are We Pricing Drugs Right? A Conversation with Peter Neumann on How Innovation is Valued Globally
In this episode of Perspectives by the Leerink Center for Pharmacoeconomics, host Mel Whittington sits down with renowned health economist Dr. Peter Neumann following the annual meeting of the Center for the Evaluation of Value and Risk in Health (CEVR) at Tufts Medical Center. Drawing from conversations that took place at the meeting, Mel and Peter explore some of the questions that are shaping how innovation is valued globally.
The discussion covers:
Whether cost-effectiveness analysis captures all the factors that are considered when pricing a drug
How payers use outcomes assessments to shape, and sometimes restrict, coverage decisions
What Medicare drug price negotiations and MFN proposals reveal about “value-based pricing”
The distinction between price and value and whether current frameworks adequately reward innovation
The growing debate around centralized health technology assessment in the U.S.
Why the field may be moving toward narrower definitions of value over time
This episode offers a window into the economic debates influencing how medicines are evaluated, reimbursed, and ultimately brought to patients.
CEVR webpage : https://cevr.tuftsmedicalcenter.org/
US vs. MFN CEA thresholds paper: https://academic.oup.com/healthaffairsscholar/article/4/4/qxag081/8586328
Cost-effective price vs. Medicare negotiated price paper: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40939703/
2 Jun 2026
What’s Behind Drug Pricing: The Hidden Role and Limits of Cost-Effectiveness Analysis
In this episode of Perspectives by the Leerink Center for Pharmacoeconomics, Melanie Whittington breaks down a fundamental—and increasingly consequential—question in health economics: what counts as value in cost-effectiveness analysis?
For biotech leaders and investors, Mel cautions that this isn’t just an academic debate. The frameworks adopted by HTA bodies influence pricing, access, and ultimately, how innovation is rewarded.
In this episode, Mel explores:
The evolution of perspective in cost-effectiveness analysis
Why CEA is not a “precise” science—and why that matters
How modeling choices impact pricing determinations
And how innovators can use these tools to tell their value story
29 May 2026
Welcome to Perspectives by the Leerink Center for Pharmacoeconomics
In our signature podcast series, Dr. Mel Whittington, a health economist and Head of the Leerink Center for Pharmacoeconomics, talks with people from across the industry to hear their stories and to better understand the societal impact of healthcare innovations. If you’re interested in participating in future podcasts or would like to learn more about the Leerink Center for Pharmacoeconomics, please email cpe@medacorp.com.
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