New AMP Report Analyzes Costs, Value of Genomic Sequencing

By Stephanie Murg, Managing Director, G2 Intelligence

At a time when data on cost and clinical outcomes are in high demand yet short supply, the Association for Molecular Pathology (AMP, Bethesda, Md.) is taking an in-depth look at the quantitative and qualitative impacts of next-generation sequencing (NGS). The results of the organization’s 2015 analysis of the costs and health economic impact of several Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) genomic sequencing procedures (GSPs) are the subject of a special article in the May 2016 issue of The Journal of Molecular Diagnostics.

The report includes aggregated cost data and work effort, including the development and use of data analysis pipelines, from nine laboratories performing 13 GSPs. Also included are payer cost-impact models for three clinical scenarios: impact of using a targeted gene panel in optimizing care for patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer, use of a targeted multi-gene panel in the diagnosis and management of patients with sensorineural hearing loss, and exome sequencing in the diagnosis and management of children with neurodevelopmental disorders of unknown genetic etiology. Each model demonstrated economic value by either reducing health care costs or identifying appropriate care pathways.

“Genomic sequencing procedures are changing the way clinicians are diagnosing and managing hereditary diseases and the delivery of oncology care,” said Linda Sabatini, Ph.D., first author of the study and director of Molecular Diagnostics at NorthShore University HealthSystem (Evanston, Ill.). “We hope that laboratories will use these tools to assess their individual costs, to consider the value structure in their own patient populations, and to contribute their data to the ongoing dialogue regarding the impact of GSPs on improving patient care.”