Budget impact analysis of temocillin insurance coverage for urinary tract infections caused by ESBL-producing pathogens in Iran

Abstract

Background: One of the most prevalent infections with a significant disease burden is urinary tract infections (UTIs), which occurs in approximately 50% of women at least once in their lifetime. Antimicrobial resistance to pathogens causing UTIs is expanding worldwide and has been associated with increased use of broad-spectrum antibiotics, including carbapenems, leading to significant costs for insurance and healthcare systems. The emergence of resistance to carbapenems has led to an increasing need for and interest in carbapenem-sparing strategies, including the use of narrow-spectrum antibiotics, such as temocillin. Temocillin has a strong bactericidal effect, along with high tolerability and a good safety profile. It is also stable toward most extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBL). The purpose of our study was to design a budget impact analysis (BIA) model and estimate the budget impact of temocillin insurance coverage for the treatment of UTIs caused by ESBL-producing bacteria from the perspective of the payer. Methods: The BIA model with insurance payer perspective was used to estimate the impact of temocillin insurance coverage on the treatment of UTIs caused by ESBL-producing bacteria over a 1-year time horizon in Iran. Direct medicine costs, hospitalization and paraclinical costs, and side effect costs were considered in this model. To assess the impact of uncertainty on the model inputs, 1-way sensitivity analyses were performed. Results: The model demonstrates that inclusion of temocillin in insurance coverage, decreasing treatment costs from $36 million to $34 million, will result in overall savings of > $1.9 million and lead to > $9 million savings in insurance costs for antimicrobial resistance. Conclusion: The inclusion of temocillin in the insurance coverage in Iran for patients developing UTIs caused by ESBL-producing bacteria would be cost-saving for insurance and decrease the risk associated with emerging antimicrobial resistance.