We are pleased to present the second installment in our recurring column, Pharma Insights. This month we take a look at an interesting twist in how the use of complementary and companion diagnostics is playing out in real-world clinical practice. In a health care system that increasingly seeks to more precisely target therapeutic approaches to diseases, diagnostic testing is the key to unlocking greater value in pharmacotherapy. Two classes of diagnostic tests—companion and complementary diagnostics—have emerged to address this need.

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The FDA recently approved the biosimilar infliximab and found that from an immunogenicity profile it was more or less similar, which is important for payers and providers, explained Jeremy Schafer, PharmD, MBA, vice president and director of specialty solutions at Precision For Value.

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Rick Lifsitz and Larry Blandford discuss if higher prices really translate into greater perceived therapeutic effectiveness in a new commentary for Journal of Clinical Pathways

Jeremy Schafer examines payer reaction to FDA warnings in Pharmaceutical Commerce.

Jeremy Schafer offers his pricing model suggestions to Medical Marketing & Media.

Precision for Value’s Jeremy Schafer, Michael Tapella, and Thanos Kantarelis conclude that discounts in the biosimilar market may be significantly deeper than originally expected.

Precision for Value’s Jeremy Schafer discusses the concept of indication-based drug contracting and how it could represent a new frontier of manufacturer-payer agreements.

Precision’s Chief Scientific Officer Amitabh Chandra and PHE founding partner Dana Goldman address health care’s Short-Termism problem in their latest article for the Harvard Business Review.

Tomas Philipson’s latest Forbes.com Op-Ed examines how international linkages between health care economies will affect how long you and your kids will live.

Tomas Philipson’s latest Forbes.com Op-Ed examines end of life care, and why health care is so valuable in the face of death.