Bupropion regulatory update
Germany's IQWiG said in a cost-benefit assessment that the cost of each of 4 antidepressants - bupropion, duloxetine, mirtazapine and venlafaxine - is above the threshold determined by IQWiG to be cost-effective. However, IQWiG conceded that limited data regarding cost and certain endpoints, including quality of life, contributed to uncertainty in the assessment.
IQWiG said that Germany's Federal Joint Committee (G-BA) charged IQWiG with carrying out the assessments in December 2009, before Germany's new drug pricing law AMNOG was enacted in January 2011. Therefore, G-BA will make no immediate decisions based on the assessments. IQWiG said it completed the assessment to demonstrate that its methods for determining a threshold for cost-effectiveness led to "sound results." ...