Miss Tessa Gastrell1, Mr Matthew Baartz1
1Novartis Pharmaceuticals Australia/NZ, Sydney, Australia
Biography:
Tessa Gastrell is a Market Access Manager at Novartis. Tessa is a health economist with a background in conducting complex cost-benefit analyses, economic evaluations, and business cases within the healthcare sector. Prior to joining Novartis, she worked across both the public sector and consulting including as a Senior Economic and Evaluation Analyst at the NSW Ministry of Health and an Economist at The Centre for International Economics. Tessa's is committed to driving positive change in healthcare and achieving reimbursed access for innovative therapies to transform patient lives.
Aim:
To evaluate the associated healthcare costs of IgA nephropathy (IgAN) and C3 Glomerulopathy (C3G) in Australian hospitals, considering the Activity-Based Funding (ABF) model and additional price weights factors.
Background:
IgAN and C3G lead to end-stage renal disease (ESRD), requiring high-cost interventions including dialysis and transplant which are primarily provided in the hospital setting. The availability and waiting time for kidney transplants further complicates these costs. The ABF model, incorporating various price weights like remoteness, Indigenous status, paediatric disease, dialysis intervention (subsequent to the primary admitted acute activity) and renal failure as a hospital-acquired complication, significantly impacts the funding of these conditions.
Methods:
A retrospective analysis of hospital administrative data from Australian state and territory hospitals was conducted using the ABF model. Costs were mapped to epidemiological data and typical health resource utilisation to ascertain total hospital costs.
Results:
Costs associated with IgAN and C3G cut across admitted patient costs, non-admitted patient costs, and emergency department costs, with dialysis and transplantation being notable cost drivers. Furthermore, these diseases pose a substantial recurring economic burden due to their chronic nature, disproportionately impacting younger patients and amplifying health inequalities to regional and remote, and Indigenous communities.
Conclusions:
IgAN and C3G pose a significant and persistent economic challenge to Australian healthcare system, further accentuated by factors encapsulated in the ABF model, associated price weights and transplant waiting times. Findings underscore the need for proactive interventions like early diagnosis, innovative treatments and supportive care to potentially mitigate these costs. Strategic healthcare policy planning is required to effectively manage the financial demand and complexities inherent in treating these rare kidney diseases.