ABSTRACT
This chapter aims to provide a roadmap to creating durable partnerships and agreements, incorporating value-based agreements and other strategies where they make sense. There are some great opportunities for partnerships. However, as with the “disease management” phenomenon in the 1990s, many healthcare companies are jumping on the value-based agreement bandwagon because they do not want to feel left out, no matter the benefits in any given deal. The multiple sclerosis agreement in the UK is a role model example for a perfect fit of a risk sharing deal. The payer and pharmaceutical companies truly shared the risk, and, despite some implementation difficulties, patients gained access to the drugs and a difficult situation for the National Health Service was averted. The pharmaceutical industry is sometimes criticized for only considering the value of its “pill” rather than considering the broader context of patient treatment.
