Hepatitis C Virus Patient Opportunity Exists Within Many of the Major U.S. Loc...( However Insurance Coverage of Hepatit...)

However, Insurance Coverage of Hepatitis C Patients Is Skewed Towards Medicare and Medicaid Compared With Dominance of Private Coverage in the General Population, According to a New Analytics Tool From Decision Resources

WALTHAM, Mass., Feb. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Decision Resources, one of the world's leading research and advisory firms focusing on pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that hepatitis C virus patient opportunity exists within many of the major U.S. local markets: Minneapolis, MN, Boston, MA and Washington DC all have large bases of untreated patients. However, hepatitis C patients often lead high-risk lifestyles and therefore are less likely to carry insurance than the general population.

The new analytics tool entitled PatientFinder: Hepatitis C Virus estimates that while 83.9 percent of the general population has medical insurance, only 67.2 percent of the hepatitis C infected population has coverage. Furthermore, the type of insurance coverage of hepatitis C patients is skewed towards Medicare and Medicaid compared with dominance of private coverage in the general population.

"Biopharmaceutical companies who are targeting hepatitis C patients in the United States need to include these unique insurance dynamics as they prioritize the states and metropolitan statistical areas in which they want to conduct clinical trials, pursue direct-to-consumer advertising and place sales reps," stated Jason LaBonte, Ph.D., vice president of new product development at Decision Resources.

Why Pharmaceutical Companies Need this Information

With the type of information included in PatientFinder, pharmaceutical organizations can identify the local markets that offer the greatest opportunity for their branded drug. Companies can identify markets that are underserved and determine if they should increase direct-to-consumer advertising, work with the local managed care o
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