Surveillance of drug prescribing: why outliers miss their targets - a qualitative study.

Background: Rising costs are a challenge for healthcare systems. To keep expenditure for drugs under control, in many healthcare systems, drug prescribing is continuously monitored. The Bavarian Drug Agreement (German: Wirkstoffvereinbarung or WSV) for the ambulatory sector in Bavaria (the federal state of Germany) was developed for this purpose.

Physicians' assessment of the Bavarian drug-expenditure control system: a qualitative study.

Background: In 2014 a new system for drug expenditures, the Wirkstoffvereinbarung (WSV, English: Active substance agreement) was implemented in Bavaria. In pre-defined indication groups, economic prescription of medications shall be enabled based on the selection, quantity, and proportion of an individual drug. Ambulatory care physicians receive quarterly trend reports on their prescribing behavior.

[PHARAO study: drug treatment of inflammatory rheumatic diseases : Guideline-conform treatment with biologics follows availability of biosimilars].

Background: With the introduction of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alpha inhibitors, the treatment of inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD) has undergone a fundamental change. Several of the originally high-priced biologics are now accessible as lower cost biosimilars, removing a significant impediment to prescription.

Objective: The present study investigated whether the availability of biosimilars is associated with an improvement in the care of IRD.

[Prescribing behavior of Bavarian general practitioners at the inpatient-outpatient interface within the context of the Bavarian active substance agreement-qualitative results of the WirtMed Study].

Background And Objectives: In 2014, the Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians of Bavaria introduced the active substance agreement (WSV) for the transparent control of pharmaceutical expenditure within the framework of the efficiency principle (§ 12 of the Fifth Book of the German Social Code [SGB V]). It replaced the prescribing target scheme. Regarding the role of the WSV, the article presents the reasons of the general practitioners (GPs) for or against a further prescription of drugs from the hospital.