The US Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) has provided a second update to previous pricing models for remdesivir [Veklury; Gilead Sciences] for the treatment of COVID-19. ICER initially released information on two pricing models for COVID-19 treatments in May 2020,Footnote 1 and subsequently released updates to the ICER-COVID Cost Recovery Model and the ICER-COVID Cost-Effectiveness Model in June 2020.Footnote 2

In this second update, ICER reports that data from four trials (ACT-1, NCT04292730, RECOVERY and SOLIDARITY) investigating the effects of remdesevir on mortality in patients with COVID-19 do not support a survival benefit with remdesevir. However, data from the US-based ACT-1 trial suggest that remdesevir treatment may result in savings on insurer payments for hospital services.

"Given these new data and remdesivir's expanded label to include less severely ill patients, ICER now suggests a health-benefit price benchmark of $2,470 for hospitalized patients with moderate-to-severe disease, and $70 for patients hospitalized with milder disease," said ICER. However, if a survival benefit is assumed, the updated ICER-COVID Cost-Effectiveness Model suggests a cost-effectiveness price range of $3980−$4140 for patients hospitalised with moderate-to-severe disease and $690−$760 for patients requiring less intensive hospital care.

ICER is sharing the new results plus scenario analyses that retain survival benefit asssumptions with international health technology assessment agencies that use the ICER-COVID model.