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Pharmaceutical companies and insurers in the United States are hoping to cash in on a tried and tested marketing tool by starting to offer money back guarantees for very expensive prescription drugs. Get to know more details about it, here.

Why Will It Be Implemented?

The money back guarantee on pricey prescription drugs comes as an attempt of the government health system and insurance companies to match the cost of care with the quality of care received and perhaps slow down the rise of the prescription drug costs. Non-profit insurer Harvard Pilgrim has this kind of money back guarantee set up with the pharmaceutical company, Amgen.

If ever a patient suffers a heart attack while using an expensive drug made by the pharmaceutical company for at least six months, Harvard Pilgrim will collect the amount the insurer has used to pay for coverage. This agreement also includes reimbursement by the insurer any out of pocket expense of the patient has paid for the drug, WBUR reported.

More Details On The Guarantee

What this money back guarantee offers for insurers is the chance to recoup whatever expense that they incurred in trying to give the best healthcare possible to their clients. Some new prescription drugs are just more expensive but not as effective as older versions and may cause undue complications.

So in order to curb this, insurance companies tend to restrict access to these new drugs because there is no assurance that the treatment will be effective with these prescription drugs, the Associated Press reported. Value-based pricing and money back guarantees are arrangements that do not benefit the consumers.

Instead of the FDA, the insurers are the ones who decide if the prescription drugs are effective. Observers believe that this arrangement only allows drug companies to maintain high prices under the guise of production and R&D costs.

While this does not help bring down prices, the money back guarantee looks to be helpful to patients in a way that the money that all the stakeholders put in goes to the treatment that works best for the patient. Stay tuned for more updates.