effect of reference pricing of nitrates on targeted and non-targeted beneficiaries' expenditures on angina medications.
Published: 2007
Language: eng
Number of pages: 80
ISBN-13: 9780494273906
Description: Background. Drug plans commonly use reference pricing (RP) to control programme costs. The literature explores RP on seniors, however, less is known about how RP affects other beneficiaries, including those not targeted. The RP of nitrates in British Columbia (BC) targeted senior and welfare beneficiaries, while long-term care recipients were exempted.Research design. Using OLS regression, the pre-RP trend was extrapolated in to the post-RP period to estimate the impact of RP on the average Pharmacare daily expenditure on angina therapy.Data. Claims submitted to Pharmacare, the BC government drug plan, from January 1990-December 2001.Conclusion. RP reduced Pharmacare daily expenditures on angina medications without shifting the costs to beneficiaries. The spill-over effect, the habit of prescribing low cost medications to beneficiaries not targeted, led to substantial decreases in Pharmacare daily expenditures on angina medications of 50%. The effects of RP on beneficiaries' health status require further study.
Notes: Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 45-06, page: 3143.

Thesis (M.Sc.)--University of Toronto, 2007.

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