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Weekly View
October 23, 2026
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ICER and West Health released our 2026 “Launch Price and Access Report,” finding that the median drug launch prices continue to exceed $250,000 per year, contributing to increases in overall healthcare costs.
On October 27th, ICER will host a public webinar to discuss the implications of this year's report on affordability and patient access. Register here.
Key findings from the report include:
- The median net launch price of drugs rose sharply, by 35%, from $190,000 in 2022 to $257,000 in 2025 (adjusted for inflation). Although this price decreased slightly, by 2%, between 2024 and 2025, it remained at historically high levels, creating challenges across the health care system.
- About one in four drugs introduced in 2025 had an annual net price exceeding $500,000, while an additional 34% were launched at prices between $200,000 and $500,000.
- Only about one in three newly approved drugs previously reviewed by ICER are priced at or below ICER’s recommended price benchmark, with the remainder exceeding their estimated value.
- The data showed the complexity of patient access during the first year post-approval, with only one-third of outpatient prescriptions ultimately filled within 30 days of attempting to fill them. A significant proportion of prescriptions were rejected due to non-coverage, likely due to new-to-market blocks.
Check out the media coverage on this report in the "ICER in the News" section below.
| | Let's see what else happened this week... | | |
ICER announced a new assessment of synthetic psilocybin (COMPASS Pathways) for treatment-resistant depression. The therapy is also referred to as COMP360.
Consistent with ICER’s process for announcing new assessments, we have spent the past five weeks conducting outreach and engaging with targeted stakeholders, including the manufacturer, relevant patient groups and clinical experts. Based on this preliminary cross-stakeholder engagement, ICER has posted a Draft Scoping Document outlining how we plan to conduct this assessment — which will be open to public comment until November 10th.
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KFF published their annual Employer Health Benefits Survey and found:
- Workers are paying on average $7,471 annually toward the premiums for employer-sponsored family health benefits this year, which is up 9%, or $621, from 2025;
- Including the employers’ share, total annual premiums for family coverage now average $28,303, up 5% or $1,310 from 2025. Over the same period, wages rose 3.7% and general inflation rose 2.7%, though inflation has been higher in recent months;
- About one in five (18%) large firms cover GLP-1 drugs specifically for weight loss, often with restrictions such as requiring participating in a lifestyle program or meeting with a clinician. Most who currently cover the drugs for weight loss say it has had either a significant (29%) or moderate (27%) impact on their prescription drug spending. Few employers who don’t cover the drugs for weight loss say that they are either very (1%) or somewhat (13%) likely to begin offering them in the next year.
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The Commonwealth Fund conducted an analysis on health insurance coverage and affordability in the US. They found:
- The uninsured rate for working-age adults (ages 19–64) rose between 2024 and 2026.The increase was statistically significant. During this time, both ACA marketplace coverage and individual insurance market enrollment declined. Medicaid coverage rates also fell, a decline that began after 2022;
- Nearly half of working-age adults, 46 percent, were inadequately insured in 2026: 11 percent were uninsured, 12 percent had a coverage gap during the year, and 23 percent were underinsured, meaning they had coverage but their plan didn’t provide affordable access to care;
- More people delayed or avoided getting health care because of the cost, with the rate climbing from 46 percent in 2022 to 50 percent in 2026.
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Billionaire Mark Cuban has spent the last five years trying to make generic drugs like chemotherapy and antifungal ointment cheaper for Americans. But earlier this year, a very different type of medicine began arriving at his Dallas factory.
One shipment contained DNA-like molecules crafted by California chemists to patch the rare genetic mutation destroying a single patient’s neurons. Another carried DNA-like molecules developed with Dutch researchers to stop a rare disease that causes adults to progressively lose control of their muscles. They are the first test of Cuban’s newest vision for his company Cost Plus Drugs: shake up the business of custom-made rare disease medicines.
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The People’s Health Care Survey, USofCare’s annual survey that captures people’s experiences with and challenges in healthcare, reached over 2,700 registered voters from June 12 through July 16. It was designed to be nationally representative, and responses were weighted to match the U.S. population based on recent Census data. USofCare describes itself as a nonpartisan nonprofit focused on advancing policies that improve access to quality, affordable healthcare.
Three-quarters of Americans feel frustrated, overwhelmed or helpless about healthcare costs, the survey found. Frustration peaks among people with commercial coverage (54%), Marketplace coverage (54%) or no coverage at all (49%). Among people insured through Medicare, Medicaid and the VA, frustration drops to just over a third.
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