Publications
Publications
Show Results For
- All HBS Web
(419)
- Faculty Publications (56)
- January 2021
- Case
Value-Based Insurance Design at Onex
By: Joshua Schwartzstein, Amitabh Chandra and Amram Migdal
The operating executives of Health and Benefits for Onex Partners, Megan Jackson Frye and Sam Camens, faced a challenge: Healthcare costs for employees of Onex’s portfolio companies were continuing to rise above the consumer price index, reflecting broader trends... View Details
Keywords: Decision Making; Cost vs Benefits; Decision Choices and Conditions; Decisions; Finance; Behavioral Finance; Insurance; Health; Health Care and Treatment; Human Resources; Compensation and Benefits; Markets; Demand and Consumers; Consumer Behavior; Social Psychology; Behavior; Interests; Motivation and Incentives; Perception; Health Industry; Insurance Industry; North America; United States
- January 2021 (Revised June 2021)
- Case
Hester Pharmaceuticals (A): A Pricing Dilemma
By: Dante Roscini and John Masko
In August 2019, the leadership of Hester Pharmaceuticals (Hester) had a problem. Italy promised to be a key market for their new breakthrough oncology drug Akrozumab, but for almost two years, its single-payer healthcare system had been unable to agree with Hester on a... View Details
Keywords: Macroeconomics; Trade; Price; Global Range; Global Strategy; Globalized Markets and Industries; Health Care and Treatment; Patents; Monopoly; Negotiation; Business and Government Relations; Risk and Uncertainty; Human Needs; Business Strategy; Commercialization; Pharmaceutical Industry; Italy
- January 2021
- Case
mPharma (A)
By: Rembrand Koning, John D. Macomber, Pippa Tubman Armerding and Wale Lawal
mPharma pioneered electronic prescriptions in Ghana, and aimed to increase drug affordability and accessibility in Africa, but the company remained unprofitable. Following investor concerns about mPharma's business, CEO Gregory Rockson considered alternative business... View Details
Keywords: Strategy; Entrepreneurship; Acquisition; Health; Business Model; Health Industry; Technology Industry; Ghana
- January 2021
- Supplement
mPharma (B)
By: Rembrand Koning, John D. Macomber, Pippa Tubman Armerding and Wale Lawal
mPharma pioneered electronic prescriptions in Ghana, and aimed to increase drug affordability and accessibility in Africa, but the company remained unprofitable. Following investor concerns about mPharma's business, CEO Gregory Rockson considered alternative business... View Details
Keywords: Strategy; Health; Entrepreneurship; Business Model; Health Industry; Technology Industry; Ghana
- Article
Treatment Of Opioid Use Disorder Among Commercially Insured U.S. Adults, 2008–17
By: Karen Shen, Eric Barrette and Leemore S. Dafny
There is abundant literature on efforts to reduce opioid prescriptions and misuse, but comparatively little on the treatment provided to people with opioid use disorder (OUD). Using claims data representing 12–15 million nonelderly adults covered through commercial... View Details
- Working Paper
Rebates in the Pharmaceutical Industry: Evidence from Medicines Sold in Retail Pharmacies in the U.S.
By: Pragya Kakani, Michael Chernew and Amitabh Chandra
Rising list prices are often used to illustrate the burden of prescription drug spending, but payers routinely negotiate rebates from manufacturers that generate differences between list and net prices. List prices are easily available and affect patient cost-sharing,... View Details
- Article
Health as a Way of Doing Business
By: Howard Koh, Sara J. Singer and Amy C. Edmondson
For too long, the worlds of business and health have been mired in a checkered, sometimes contentious, history. Millions of deaths worldwide can be attributed to risk factors including tobacco use, alcohol and drug misuse, and suboptimal dietary intake linked to... View Details
- January 2018 (Revised January 2019)
- Case
ZappRx
By: Jeffrey J. Bussgang and Olivia Hull
In October 2015, ZappRx founder Zoe Barry is deciding between two business models for her health technology start-up. Her product, a software application that aims to expedite the prescription fulfillment process for patients with rare diseases, has attracted interest... View Details
- May 2017
- Article
When Discounts Raise Costs: The Effect of Copay Coupons on Generic Utilization
By: Leemore S. Dafny, Christopher Ody and Matt Schmitt
Branded pharmaceutical manufacturers frequently offer “copay coupons” that insulate consumers from cost sharing, thereby undermining insurers’ ability to influence drug utilization. We study the impact of copay coupons on branded drugs first facing generic entry... View Details
- April 2017
- Case
Imprimis (A)
By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Karen Elterman and Marc Appel
This case examines the strategic choices and evolving business model of Imprimis Pharmaceuticals from the perspective of CEO Mark Baum. The (A) case provides a brief history of the company and of the compounding business, outlining the challenges faced by Imprimis in... View Details
- April 2017
- Supplement
Imprimis (B)
By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Karen Elterman and Marc Appel
This case is a supplement to Imprimis (A). It describes the company’s decision to enter into the pharmaceutical compounding business in 2013–2014. Imprimis purchased a compounded ophthalmological medication called Dropless Therapy, which was injected into patients’... View Details
- April 2017
- Supplement
Imprimis (C)
By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Karen Elterman and Marc Appel
This case is a supplement to Imprimis (A & B). Set in 2015, it first describes Imprimis’s decision to introduce its own line of compounded eye drop medication called LessDrops. The case then examines the moral dilemma faced by CEO Mark Baum, who was struck by the... View Details
- Article
Undermining Value-Based Purchasing — Lessons from the Pharmaceutical Industry
By: Leemore S. Dafny, Christopher Ody and Matt Schmitt
The analogy between value-based purchasing in pharmaceuticals and the new frontier of alternative payment models for health care providers is relatively straightforward. Insurers are increasingly demanding steep discounts from providers in exchange for inclusion in... View Details
- March 2016 (Revised March 2022)
- Teaching Note
Express Scripts: Promoting Prescription Drug Home Delivery (A) and (B)
By: John Beshears
The pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) sector processes prescription drug claims on behalf of companies that offer a prescription drug benefit to their employees. The case associated with this teaching note follows Bob Nease, chief scientist at Express Scripts, as he... View Details
Keywords: Pharmaceuticals; Prescription Drugs; Pharmacy Benefit Manager; PBM; Healthcare; Behavioral Economics; Choice Architecture; Active Choice; Service Delivery; Decision Choices and Conditions; Consumer Behavior; Distribution Channels; Health Care and Treatment; Service Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry
- February 2016
- Case
Express Scripts: Promoting Prescription Drug Home Delivery (A)
By: John Beshears, Patrick Rooney and Jenny Sanford
The pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) sector processes prescription drug claims on behalf of companies that offer a prescription drug benefit to their employees. This case follows Bob Nease, Chief Scientist at Express Scripts, as he considers methods to promote home... View Details
Keywords: Pharmaceuticals; Prescription Drugs; Pharmacy Benefit Manager; PBM; Healthcare; Behavioral Economics; Choice Architecture; Active Choice; Service Delivery; Decision Choices and Conditions; Health Care and Treatment; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Compensation and Benefits; Pharmaceutical Industry
- February 2016 (Revised March 2022)
- Case
Express Scripts: Promoting Prescription Drug Home Delivery (B)
By: John Beshears, Patrick Rooney and Jenny Sanford
The pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) sector processes prescription drug claims on behalf of companies that offer a prescription drug benefit to their employees. This case follows Bob Nease, Chief Scientist at Express Scripts, as he considers methods to promote home... View Details
- January 2015 (Revised July 2019)
- Case
CVS Health: Promoting Drug Adherence
Email mking@hbs.edu for a courtesy copy.
The case describes a program that CVS Health recently implemented to improve medication adherence, an important problem from a societal, public policy, and firm... View Details
The case describes a program that CVS Health recently implemented to improve medication adherence, an important problem from a societal, public policy, and firm... View Details
Keywords: Medication Adherence; Affordable Care Act (ACA); Marketing Strategy; Communication Strategy; Customer Value and Value Chain; Decisions; Health Care and Treatment; Goals and Objectives; Resource Allocation; Marketing Communications; Consumer Behavior; Measurement and Metrics; Service Delivery; Behavior; Motivation and Incentives; Social Issues; Information Technology; Value Creation; Health Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry; Insurance Industry; Public Relations Industry; Retail Industry; United States
- Winter 2014
- Article
Retail Inventory: Managing the Canary in the Coal Mine!
By: Vishal Gaur, Saravanan Kesavan and Ananth Raman
Retail inventory is a statistic that is closely watched by retailers as well as their investors, lenders, and suppliers. Retailers not only benefit from inventory, but also bear the cost of excess inventory. Investors, lenders, and suppliers interpret this statistic... View Details
- September 2014 (Revised February 2015)
- Case
Pfizer and AstraZeneca: Marketing an Acquisition (A)
By: John A. Quelch and James Weber
In 2014, Pfizer proposed a friendly acquisition of AstraZeneca, but the AstraZeneca board resisted over price and strategy concerns. Was this good for pharmaceutical consumers? Pfizer, like pharmaceutical companies in general, faced difficulties in growing sales due to... View Details
- July 2013 (Revised October 2014)
- Case
Following Lance Armstrong: Excellence Corrupted
By: Clayton Rose and Noah Fisher
After years of vigorous denials, on January 14, 2013 Lance Armstrong admitted in a television interview with Oprah Winfrey that he "doped" in each of his record seven consecutive Tour de France victories, confirming the findings a few months earlier by the US... View Details
Keywords: Corruption; Ethics; Crime and Corruption; Leadership; Culture; Sports Industry; United States; Europe; France