How one project will change the way value is measured in healthcare

The Innovation and Value Initiative (IVI) Open-Source Value Project is a first-of-its-kind tool to better measure value in healthcare treatments. The effort kicked off with the release of an open-source tool focused on measuring value in treatments for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), one of the costliest and potentially debilitating chronic diseases.

Linthicum

Mark Linthicum, director of scientific communications at IVI, talks to Managed Healthcare Executive (MHE) about other disease platforms in development and discusses the major players involved.

MHE: What other specific disease platforms are in development?

Linthicum: IVI is currently exploring our next disease-the original launch focused specifically on RA, as one of the costliest conditions in healthcare-and more news about future medical areas will be forthcoming over the next few months.

MHE: How will you try to enforce what you do?

Linthicum: Many healthcare stakeholders are now being asked to make decisions based on value, but few are also given the tools to make those decisions in an evidence-based manner. IVI seeks to solve that problem. The OSVP allows unmatched input by giving diverse stakeholders a seat at the table, especially patients. Future changes to the model and supporting research to advance the underlying methods will all be based on the feedback received from these stakeholders. This process-as well as the open-source nature of the models themselves-incentivizes stakeholders to offer their feedback to ensure that their unique viewpoint is captured in the tool and can be built upon in further iterations.

MHE: What are the organizations that are part of this and what percentage of the market do they represent?

Linthicum: IVI is a broad coalition, bringing together members from the Patient Advocate Foundation, Geisinger Health Plan, PhRMA, American Express, the National Pharmaceutical Council, the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), UBC, Genentech, Pfizer, Partners Healthcare System, Health Quality Advisors, Amgen, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Harvard Pilgrim, Merck, UPMC, AbbVie and MedStar Health Research Institute. This brings together the major players across all the major stakeholder groups, including healthcare systems, payers, patients, life sciences companies and more.