Cancer, by a wide margin, is employers' top therapeutic area of concern. The increasing cost and complexity of cancer treatment make oncology a difficult condition for employers to manage. HIRC's report, "Employer-Sponsored Health Plans: Trends in Oncology Management," examines employer approaches to the management of oncology by addressing the following questions: 

• How has employers' level of concern with cancer changed in recent years?
• What actions are employers taking to minimize health care costs and improve the quality of care?
• How has employers' strategic stance towards the management of oncology evolved?
• Which utilization management tactics are employers implementing?
• How is patient cost sharing evolving?
• Which pharmaceutical manufacturers lead in supporting employers' cancer-related needs?

Employers Increasing their Use of Utilization Management Tactics for Cancer Therapies. About 54% of employers now have a moderate or more aggressive strategic stance towards oncology management. Employers have taken action to moderate oncology-related costs by expanding their usage of specialty pharmacy providers and utilization management tactics for oncology medications. Employers using prior authorization for cancer therapies increased by 11% in 2014, while mandatory specialty pharmacy for patients increased by 18% year over year. The full report reviews employers' current oncology management strategies and trends in patient cost sharing in detail. 

Merck and Genentech Best Support Employers' Oncology-related Needs. Employers actively work with various vendors to offer oncology-related programs for their employees. Of the manufacturers providing oncology support, Merck and Genentech lead all other manufacturers in their presence amongst the employer segment and in quality of program support offered to employers. 

Pharmaceutical manufacturers most frequently provide employers with information about cancer screening and prevention and educational materials on appropriate treatments. Only larger manufacturers are providing support related to post-diagnosis issues. There are opportunities for pharmaceutical manufacturers to further support employers' oncology management initiatives. Employers indicate that cancer prevention and screening programs top the list of employers' partnership priorities.

The complete report also includes:

• Anticipated trends in employer-sponsored coverage
• Actions employers are taking to improve the quality and reduce the cost of care
• Employer collaborations with specialty pharmacy providers. 

Research Methodology and Report Availability. In January 2014, HIRC surveyed 48 large employers and 12 health care coalitions. A combination of online surveys and follow-up telephone interviews were used to gather in-depth information regarding employers' management of cancer treatments. All employers surveyed have greater than 2,000 active employees. The full report is part of the Managed Oncology Service, and is now available to subscribers at www.hirc.com/summary/mos.