Physicians prefer combo Rxs to treat heart disease

More than half of physicians prefer two drugs in a single-pill combination for the treatment of cardiovascular disease, and managed care organizations (MCOs) said they would relegate Novartis' Exforge, which combines amlodipine (Norvasc, Pfizer) and valsartan (Diovan, Novartis), to Tier 3 of their formularies, according to a new report issued by Decision Resources. The report—Combination Cardiovascular Drugs: A Survey of PCPs, Cardiologists, and MCO Pharmacy Directors—found that 56% of primary care physicians and 53% of cardiologists surveyed said they would like more than two drugs in a single-pill combination. When triple-drug single-pill combinations were considered, physicians prefer the combination of ACE inhibitor, beta-blocker, and statin. The report found that 65% of MCOs said they would place Exforge on Tier 3, while 20% say they would exclude the agent from their formularies.

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