Estimating Public and Patient Savings From Basic Research-A Study of Optical Coherence Tomography in Managing Antiangiogenic Therapy.

PURPOSE: To compare patient and Medicare savings from the use of optical coherence tomography (OCT) in guiding therapy for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nvAMD) to the research investments made in developing OCT by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Science Foundation (NSF).

DESIGN: Observational cohort study.

METHODS: Main outcome measures were spending by Medicare as tracked by Current Procedural Terminology codes on intravitreal injections (67028), retinal OCT imaging (92134), and anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) treatment-specific J-codes (J0178, J2778, J9035, J3490, and J3590). These claims were identified from the Medicare Provider Utilization and Payment Data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services among fee-for-service (FFS) Medicare beneficiaries from 2012 to 2015; 2008 claims were acquired from the 100% FFS Part B Medicare Claims File. OCT research costs were determined by searching for grants awarded by NIH and NSF from inception to 2015. All costs and savings were discounted by 3% annually and adjusted for inflation to 2015 dollars.

RESULTS: From 2008 to 2015, the United States government and nvAMD patients have accrued an estimated savings of $9.0 billion and $2.2 billion, respectively, from the use of OCT to guide personalized anti-VEGF treatment. The $9.0 billion represents a 21-fold return on government investment into developing the technology through NIH and NSF grants.

CONCLUSIONS: Although an overall cost-benefit ratio of government-sponsored research is difficult to estimate because the benefit may be diffuse and delayed, the investment in OCT over 2 decades has been recouped many times over in just a few years through better personalized therapy.