The Value of Specialty Medications: An Employer Perspective

Specialty medications are currently used to treat a widening array of chronic conditions. From an employer’s perspective, this has raised concerns about how to manage the rising costs of employer-sponsored health benefits due to the increased use of these specialty medications by physicians. However, it is important that employers recognize both the costs and benefits associated with specialty medications for employees and their dependants.

This report provides a quantitative cost-benefit analysis of the use of specialty medications in treating three chronic diseases: rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, and multiple sclerosis. The modelled results generate the costs and benefits from three different perspectives—the perspective of the plan-sponsoring employer; the broader corporate perspective; and the societal perspective. The findings suggest that the benefits from employer-provided specialty medications are real, and extend well beyond the workplace of the beneficiary receiving treatment. They include benefits to other companies related to reduced caregiving needs of treated dependants, as well as the reduced use of both in-patient and out-patient health care resources.