The enigma of value: in search of affordable and accessible health care

In times of shrinking resources and pharmaceutical breakthrough situations, our value-assessing systems are stretched to their very limits. Assessing value is highly complex. Current value-assessment systems risk neglecting important factors, such as therapy duration, budget impact, or the importance of combination therapies. Especially when dealing with breakthrough therapies within high-prevalence indications, these factors play an important role in health care spending. When it comes to assessing value in Switzerland, the system is innovation and access-friendly; the price level of pharmaceutical products, however, is relatively high in comparison to neighboring countries. The Swiss pricing and reimbursement system can still improve in terms of efficiency and transparency.