Beneva unveils its proactive prescription drug management strategy
Quebec City, November 14, 2024—Beneva’s proactive management of prescription drug costs has generated annual savings of over $71 million for its group insurance partners and plan members thanks to a four-pronged strategy consisting of mandatory biosimilar transition, pharmaceutical agreements, a prior authorization program and step therapy.
“Global Biosimilars Week is the perfect opportunity to highlight the importance of improving access to treatment and optimizing prescription drug costs. Since it was founded, Beneva’s approach has always been to integrate innovative solutions into its group benefits plans to enhance the well-being of plan members and allow plan sponsors to make actual savings,” said Éric Trudel, Executive Vice-President and Leader of Group Insurance at Beneva.
A comprehensive approach for concrete results
Due to their lower prices compared to originator biologics, the transition to biosimilars in 2022 has been one of the most effective ways of offsetting rising plan costs. Since biosimilars can cost 10% to 40% less than biologics, this measure generated savings of $51 million this year alone. The transition to biosimilars is also supported by online resources and transparent exemption criteria.
The implementation of product listing agreements has so far resulted in $20 million in savings annually, which improves premium rates at renewal based on the group’s claims experience. These agreements provide an average discount of 12% on over 50 prescription drugs, several of which are used to treat chronic conditions.
Moreover, a robust prior authorization program guarantees that prescription drugs are medically necessary treatment and optimized in terms of cost-effectiveness, while over 300 molecules are submitted to this assessment. As for integrating step therapy into the prior authorization program, this encourages the testing of less expensive drugs before trying specialized ones, ensuring balance between efficacy and the cost of comprehensive coverage.
See the results of this strategy (PDF)
About Beneva
Created by the coming together of La Capitale and SSQ Insurance, Beneva is the largest insurance mutual in Canada with more than 3.5 million members and customers. Beneva employs over 5,500 dedicated employees: people looking out for people. Its human approach is rooted in mutualist values that are shared by its employees. With $25.2 billion in assets, Beneva positions itself as a major player in the insurance and financial services industry. Its head office is located in Quebec City.