There was a time when market access and pricing research was simply called “payer research”. A simple term that was perfectly suited the US market. In Europe, however, the term "payer" means very little. And what is meant by it refers to a strongly heterogeneous group of experts, all of them having some sort of stake in price and market access of products and services in healthcare. Who they are exactly is a particularly important question to guarantee the quality of your study. 

It is not an easy question and the answer is different each time.

For each study, the first thing to think about is the archetypes you need. Do we need KOLs able to think “value” or do we need clinicians involved in HTA and market access decisions? What about selecting pricing experts or economic negotiators? Any need to interview hospital or regional decision-makers or purchasers? What about technical experts to help us understand implications on specific funding systems (e.g. DRG)? Is there any point in including formulary committee members or local watchdogs issuing prescription disincentives?
Obviously some experts can cover many of these aspects but usually studies need a specific, optimal mix of “payer archetypes”. 

Nothing new, so far. Most agencies describe the payer archetypes in their proposals and they often do so per country.  Moreover, most agencies propose samples that take into account the required expertise especially if the topic is a rare disease, a specific cancer or a device.

But AX'S Consulting goes a step further!

Because of our in-depth knowledge of healthcare systems, and experience in a large range of countries, we start our project by drawing up which pathways to pricing and market access to follow, and which peculiarities will be critical in different markets.  This allows us to select the right experts from the beginning, avoiding less productive interviews. As we conduct these interviews ourselves, we do not need to talk about the obvious and the basics, wasting valuable time. We immediately take the experts to the things you want to know, leaving us more time to carve out the real important topics

Since we have been keeping the interviewing process in our own hands for so many years, we know a lot of experts, and we know many very well. Therefore, we can predict how productive they will be for your studies.   

Obviously "payers" are human beings, with their strengths and weaknesses. Some of them are very fact-based or limited by conflicts of interest while others are more open and creative. Some of your studies aim to address uncertainties requiring the fact-based experts, while other studies need to draw a more futuristic MA&P landscape for which the more creative experts are best suitable.
To make a long story short, AX'S is in the position to imagine the dynamics of your study and to select the most appropriate “payers” each time again.

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