Pharmaceutical Economics
Pharmaceutical economics are a partial aspect of health economics with a focus on the economic evaluation and analysis of the manifold consequences of pharmacotherapy.
While in the past the focus of pharmacotherapy assessments was on the effects and rate of adverse events, economic and sociological issues are increasingly included in such assessments. This process was triggered by the increasing treatment costs in the healthcare sector – caused by modern therapies and the continuously increasing life expectancy.
With health insurances having started to refuse payment for perceived uneconomic therapeutic approaches, proving the economic efficiency of a specific therapy plays a key role for the respective pharmaceutical company. Pharmaeconomic studies examine the clinical, financial and human consequences of a specific pharmacotherapy to assess this therapy's costs and medical consequences. Costs are divided into direct costs, i.e., costs for medical care and drug therapy, and indirect costs, including necessary periods of care and the extent of disability and also psychosocial aspects and general quality-of-life issues.
Typical positions in pharmaceutical economics include: