MAP - Market Access Podcast

Hosted by Dr. Stefan Walzer

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Episodes

114

Latest episode

Jun 2026

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About the show

Market Access (or alternatively reimbursement) in health care is THE key competence in order to be commercially successful with a new drug, medical device or digital health application. However, given the fact that market access is a complex field involving various disciplines and is an ever-changing field, it is difficult to be up to speed with the different evolvements across the world. MAP is THE bi-weekly Market Access Podcast provided by MArS Market Access & Pricing Strategy, which is your health care consultancy in the German-speaking markets and allows you to keep up to date with market access , reimbursement and pricing issues in the D-A-CH countries and around the world. With MAP you will get a summary of core market access systems and processes as well as latest changes in regulations including statements and opinions of core decision makers and stakeholders from various countries. The CEO and founder of MArS is also the driver behind MAP: Dr. Stefan Walzer works in the field of payer strategy, pricing, health economics and reimbursement since 2004 and is the founder and CEO of MArS Market Access & Pricing Strategy GmbH based in Germany. MArS makes it as easy as possible for you to get your Pharmaceutical, MedTech or digital health product to the market and of course get the price it deserves. Stefan previously worked as a payer consultant for various global pharmaceutical and medical device / diagnostic companies, successfully launching their products across the world. He was the Global Payer Strategy Leader for various products and compounds at F. Hoffmann – La Roche AG, where he successfully developed early payer strategies as well as launching and maintaining the reimbursement process for top brands and early compounds. Stefan is capable in translating the clinical and economic evidence into successful reimbursement submissions and pricing negotiations especially in Austria, Germany and Switzerland. Additionally he teaches market access, pricing and negotiations at the State University of Baden-Wuerttemberg and the University of Applied Sciences Weingarten-Ravensburg (both Germany). Besides other roles and responsibilities. Stefan was the head of the committee “Inpatient care” of the German Health Economic Association (DGGÖ). Furthermore he is also a member of the Austrian Health Economic Association (ATHEA) and the Swiss Health Economic Association (SGGÖ). Additionally, he is a member of the Access Advisory Committee of the Global Pneumonia Prevention Coalition. Stefan received a Master of Science in Economics from the University of Tuebingen (Germany), a PhD in Health Economics from the University of Zurich (Switzerland) and a post-graduate diploma in Clinical Trials from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (UK). He is co-author of more than 40 peer-reviewed scientific articles and more than 300 scientific abstracts.

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June 15, 202637 min

Dynamic Rebates, Drug Tenders & AMNOG: Is Germany Rewriting the Rules for Pharma, Thomas Hammerschmidt?

Tune in to the newest episode of MAP, the Market Access Podcast, where Dr. Stefan Walzer engages in an insightful discussion with Prof. Dr. Thomas Hammerschmidt, a leading expert in Pharmaceutical Management at the Technical University of Applied Sciences (TH Rosenheim) in Bavaria. Together, they explore the latest proposals influencing AMNOG, pharmaceutical pricing, reimbursement, and market access. Topics include dynamic mandatory rebates, patented drug tenders, price-volume agreements, and their potential consequences for pharmaceutical companies operating in Germany.The removal of combination rebates and AMNOG guardrails could foster greater innovation incentives. The key takeaway? Pharma companies must brace themselves for heightened pricing pressures, increased uncertainty, and a transformed reimbursement landscape. For teams focused on market access, pricing, and commercialization, the upcoming weeks could shape the reimbursement environment for years to come.The critical question: Can Germany balance healthcare cost containment while maintaining incentives for pharmaceutical innovation and investment?Stay connected by subscribing on your favorite podcast platform or listening directly on our website: MAP Podcasts —and if you enjoyed the episode, don’t forget to rate it and the podcast!MAP is the first and only bi-weekly market access podcast provided by MArS—and the global #1 podcast in the field of health economics. For more information about MArS Market Access and Pricing Strategy, visit: https://marketaccess4-0.com/#MarketAccess #Pharma #AMNOG #HealthcarePolicy #GermanyPharmaReform #PricingAndReimbursement #PatentedDrugTenders #PharmaceuticalIndustry #Germany #HealthEconomics #MarketAccessPodcast #LifeSciences #HealthcareInnovation #mAxInsights #marketaccesspodcast

June 8, 202636 min

Wie finanziert Deutschland Gesundheitsinnovation, ohne den Patientenzugang zu gefährden, Afschin Gandjour?

In der deutschsprachigen Spezialfolge des MAP – Market Access Podcast spricht Dr. Stefan Walzer mit Prof. Dr. Afschin Gandjour, Arzt, Gesundheitsökonom und Finanzexperte, über eine der zentralen gesundheitspolitischen Fragen dieser Wochen: Was bedeuten Finanzkommission und Referentenentwurf konkret für den Arzneimittelmarkt? Reicht ein dynamischer Herstellerabschlag – oder braucht es Kosten‑Nutzen-Analysen? Wo drohen Fehlanreize für innovative Arzneimittel, insbesondere Orphan Drugs, und welche Rolle spielen vertrauliche Rabatte und internationale Referenzpreise?Wer im Pharmazeutischen Markt, Market Access oder Gesundheitspolitik unterwegs ist und verstehen muss, wie Deutschland Innovation finanzieren und Versorgung sichern kann, für diejenigen ist diese Episode ein Pflichtprogramm.Bleiben Sie auf dem Laufenden, indem Sie den Podcast auf Ihrer bevorzugten Podcast-Plattform abonnieren oder direkt auf unserer Website anhören: MAP Podcasts – und wenn euch die Folge gefallen hat, vergesst nicht, sie und den Podcast zu bewerten!MAP ist der erste und einzige zweiwöchentliche Podcast zum Thema Marktzugang, der von MArS angeboten wird – und der weltweit führende Podcast im Bereich Gesundheitsökonomie. Weitere Informationen zu MArS Market Access and Pricing Strategy finden Sie unter: https://marketaccess4-0.com/#MarketAccess #PharmazeutischenMarkt #Gesundheitsökonomie #Gesundheitspolitik #HealthEconomics #Finanzkommission #Arzneimittelpolitik #GesundheitspolitikDE #Herstellerabschlag #KostenNutzenAnalyse #GKVStabilisierung #mAxInsights #marketaccesspodcast

June 1, 202639 min

What lessons can Market Access teams learn from an Olympic medalist, Livia Altmann?

From Olympic ice to AI-powered leadership: What can Market Access teams learn from elite sports? In the 111+1 anniversary episode of MAP – the Market Access Podcast, Dr. Stefan Walzer interviews Livia Altmann, a former Swiss Olympic ice hockey player who has transitioned into a leadership and "Human Intelligence 2.0" expert. Together, they explore how mental training, consistency, and energy management drive success in both elite sports and the business world—and why, in an AI-driven era, execution outshines knowledge.Livia shares insights on how leaders can use AI as an enabler rather than a replacement. She emphasizes the importance of maintaining control through a growth mindset, unwavering focus under pressure, and strong self-awareness to build trust, align teams, and make better decisions. If you're part of the Market Access, life sciences, or healthcare industries and want your team to thrive under pressure in the age of AI, this is a conversation you won't want to miss!Stay connected by subscribing on your favorite podcast platform or listening directly on our website: MAP Podcasts —and if you enjoyed the episode, don’t forget to rate it and the podcast!MAP is the first and only bi-weekly market access podcast provided by MArS—and the global #1 podcast in the field of health economics. For more information about MArS Market Access and Pricing Strategy, visit: https://marketaccess4-0.com/#MarketAccess #Pharma #HealthEconomics# #Medtech #DigitalHealth #AI #mAxInsights #HumanIntelligence #MAPPodcast #marketaccess #marketaccesspodcast #HumanIntelligence2_0 #HumanAICollaboration #AIEnabledLeadership #EliteSportsMindset #OlympicWinner #PowerSkills #HighPerformingTeams #MarketAccessLeadership

May 15, 202630 min

How Are UK NICE and US IRA/MFN Rewriting Global Pharma Pricing, Sreeram Ramagopalan?

In the latest episode of MAP – the Market Access Podcast, Dr. Stefan Walzer speaks with Sreeram Ramagopalan, a global expert at the intersection of biotech value, HTA, real‑world evidence and market access. Together they unpack how the UK NICE threshold increase (from £20–30k to £25–35k per QALY) and US reforms (IRA, MFN) are quietly rewriting the rules for global launch sequencing and pricing strategy.They discuss why the US is no longer an isolated “free pricing” island, how UK and EU prices can now feed back into US revenues, and why small and mid‑size biotechs, in particular, can no longer afford to treat US and ex‑US strategies as separate worlds.If you’re in pharma/biotech, pricing & market access or RWE, and you’re not yet stress‑testing your global evidence, price floors and launch plan against MFN and NICE reforms, this episode is your wake‑up call.https://becarispublishing.com/doi/10.57264/cer-2026-0041Stay connected by subscribing on your favorite podcast platform or listening directly on our website: MAP Podcasts —and if you enjoyed the episode, don’t forget to rate it and the podcast!MAP is the first and only bi-weekly market access podcast provided by MArS—and the global #1 podcast in the field of health economics. For more information about MArS Market Access and Pricing Strategy, visit: https://marketaccess4-0.com/#MarketAccess #HealthEconomics #HealthPolicy #HealthcareFinance #HealthFinancing #HealthInvestment #NICEReform #IRAPricing #MFNPolicy #BiotechValueCreation #GlobalLaunchStrategy #marketaccesspodcast

May 1, 202638 min

How Can Europe Move from Innovation Paradox to Powerhouse, Cuno Moser?

In the latest episode of MAP – the Market Access Podcast, Dr. Stefan Walzer engages with Swiss healthcare strategist Cuno Moser to explore Europe's "innovation paradox" in healthcare. Despite its strengths in research, data quality, and clinical expertise, Europe struggles to transform pilot projects into scalable, reimbursable solutions. With over 27 fragmented reimbursement systems in the EU and in Switzerland, significant barriers impede progress in digital health, medtech, and AI-driven care. Beyond funding, challenges such as misaligned incentives, insufficient execution infrastructure, and flawed system design keep innovation stuck in "pilot purgatory."Looking ahead, while Europe may not lead in speed, it has the opportunity to excel in quality and trust. This could allow European health platforms to establish a competitive edge. If you're involved in digital health, medtech, AI, or market access and find your solution stalled between a promising pilot and real-world scalability, this episode is a must-listen.https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7437804838232453120/Stay connected by subscribing on your favorite podcast platform or listening directly on our website: MAP Podcasts —and if you enjoyed the episode, don’t forget to rate it and the podcast!MAP is the first and only bi-weekly market access podcast provided by MArS—and the global #1 podcast in the field of health economics. For more information about MArS Market Access and Pricing Strategy, visit: https://marketaccess4-0.com/#MarketAccess #Pharma #EuropeanHealthcare #Medtech #DigitalHealth #AIinHealthcare #mAxInsights #FromPilotToScale #InnovationParadox #ScalingHealthInnovation #QualityOverSpeed #MAPPodcast #marketaccess #marketaccesspodcast

April 15, 202638 min

Are primary research platforms adapting to payer dynamics, Shrutya Bhalla?

In the latest episode of the MAP – Market Access Podcast, Dr. Stefan Walzer speaks with pricing and access expert Shrutya Bhalla about how primary research must evolve in an era of AI, policy shocks, and accelerating market complexity. The key takeaway: high‑quality primary research is no longer just about collecting insights – it must enable real strategic choices on pricing, access, launch sequencing, and evidence generation. This means moving from slow, static projects to continuous, platform‑driven, AI‑supported research, using AI for speed, automation and better hypotheses while keeping humans firmly in the lead for judgment, context and responsibility, and building research that is robust enough for MFN, new US tariffs, and fast‑changing global policy environments.Shrutya also shares how new stakeholder research platforms like Mulya, and innovations such as Market Access 4.0 tools like mAxInsights, DO-Bo, Q-Bo and Wafle, are redefining how we run payer research: faster, more economical, and closer to real‑time decision needs. If you work in market access, pricing, Health Economics and Outcomes Research (HEOR) or commercialization, this episode is a must‑listen to understand where primary research is headed.Stay connected by subscribing on your favorite podcast platform or listening directly on our website: MAP Podcasts —and if you enjoyed the episode, don’t forget to rate it and the podcast!MAP is the first and only bi-weekly market access podcast provided by MArS—and the global #1 podcast in the field of health economics. For more information about MArS Market Access and Pricing Strategy, visit: https://marketaccess4-0.com/#MarketAccess #PricingAndReimbursement #PrimaryResearch #GlobalHealth #Mulya #mAxInsights #DO-Bo #Q-Bo #Wafle #Pharma #AIinHealthcare #PayerInsights #CommercialStrategy #MAPPodcast #marketaccess #marketaccesspodcast

April 1, 202640 min

How Can Political Leadership Turn Health into an Economic Priority, Hatice Küçük Benton?

In this episode of the MAP – Market Access Podcast, Dr. Stefan Walzer speaks with Hatice Küçük Beton, Executive Director of the G20 Health and Development Partnership, about how to make global health truly investable – and keep it on the political agenda once the immediate crisis fades. They explore why high-level leadership, from Angela Merkel’s role during Germany’s G20 presidency to Japan’s joint health–finance initiative, was crucial in moving health from a “social cost” to a strategic economic and security issue. Hatice explains how bringing health and finance ministers to the same table – and getting them to speak the same financial language – has begun to reshape thinking around budgets, risk and long‑term system resilience.The conversation then dives into what a practical health investment framework could look like, with clear positive qualifiers, benchmarks and disqualifiers to guide capital into high-impact areas without overburdening investors with new bureaucracy. Hatice and Stefan discuss why health must be de‑politicised and reframed as a pillar of economic resilience, geopolitical security and human wellbeing – not a “nice to have” public service – and why returns on health investments should not be taboo. If you work in market access, health economics, policy, pharma, medtech or healthcare investment, this episode offers concrete ideas on how smarter, market‑driven health investment can shape global and national health systems by 2030.Stay connected by subscribing on your favorite podcast platform or listening directly on our website: MAP Podcasts —and if you enjoyed the episode, don’t forget to rate it and the podcast!MAP is the first and only bi-weekly market access podcast provided by MArS—and the global #1 podcast in the field of health economics. For more information about MArS Market Access and Pricing Strategy, visit: https://marketaccess4-0.com/#MarketAccess #GlobalHealth #G20 #HealthEconomics #HealthInvestment #HealthFinancing #HealthPolicy #HealthcareFinance #G20Health #ImpactInvesting #marketaccess #marketaccesspodcast

March 15, 202634 min

Is Europe Still More Attractive Than the US, China, India or MENA for Medtech Investment, Bernard Bichsel?

In the latest Market Access Podcast episode, host Stefan Walzer sits down with Bernard “Bernie” Bichsel – one of Europe’s most experienced voices in medtech regulation and former Head of the Medical Devices Division at Swissmedic – to unpack how regulation and market access truly fit together. They discuss why medical device regulation in Europe is still young compared to pharma, why the MDR/IVDR “notified body bottleneck” is largely yesterday’s problem, and how smart startups build regulatory timelines, costs, and clinical evidence into their plans from day one.They then zoom out to Omnibus, the AI Act, and geopolitics, and what all of this means for the attractiveness of Europe vs. the US, China, India, and the rapidly growing Arabic region as medtech markets. Despite the challenges, Europe still offers world‑class innovation, strong universities, and a powerful SME ecosystem – and remains a key region for medtech investment. If you’re a medtech founder, regulatory lead, or market access professional, this episode will help you rethink when and how you integrate regulation and reimbursement into your strategy.Stay connected by subscribing on your favorite podcast platform or listening directly on our website: MAP Podcasts —and if you enjoyed the episode, don’t forget to rate it and the podcast!MAP is the first and only bi-weekly market access podcast provided by MArS—and the global #1 podcast in the field of health economics. For more information about MArS Market Access and Pricing Strategy, visit: https://marketaccess4-0.com/#MarketAccess #MedTech #MDR #IVDR #RegulatoryAffairs #HealthEconomics #medtech #medtechregulation #Reimbursement #Startups #EUHealthcare #marketaccess #marketaccesspodcast

March 1, 202639 min

From Necessary Tasks to New Insights: How Can AI Act as a Sparring Partner in Market Access, Helmut Butscher?

In this episode, Stefan Walzer talks with experienced Market Access manager Helmut Butscher about concrete AI applications across the full Market Access value chain. They explore how AI accelerates systematic literature reviews, unlocks real‑world evidence from complex data sources, supports HTA dossier preparation, and enables smarter decisions on pricing, reimbursement and global launch sequencing. They also address the limits and risks of AI in a highly regulated setting – from opaque HTA and payer decisions to regulatory uncertainty around AI‑generated evidence and the ethical tension between efficiency and fairness in health technology assessment.Stefan and Helmut then look ahead to the evolving role of the Market Access manager – not as someone replaced by algorithms, but as a central orchestrator who uses AI as a powerful sparring partner to make better, faster and more transparent decisions. Whether you work in Market Access, HEOR, pricing, strategy or related fields, this episode offers a clear, practice‑oriented view on how to start using AI meaningfully in your daily work – and where it pays to remain cautious.Stay connected by subscribing on your favorite podcast platform or listening directly on our website: MAP Podcasts —and if you enjoyed the episode, don’t forget to rate it and the podcast!MAP is the first and only bi-weekly market access podcast provided by MArS—and the global #1 podcast in the field of health economics. For more information about MArS Market Access and Pricing Strategy, visit: https://marketaccess4-0.com/#MarketAccess #OrphanDrugs #RareDisease #DrugPricing #HealthEconomics #CostEffectiveness #BudgetImpact #RealWorldEvidence #InnovativeContracting #GeneTherapy #HealthcarePolicy #Payers #MAPPodcast #marketaccess #marketaccesspodcast

February 15, 202652 min

Can Innovative Contracting Turn High‑Cost Therapies into Sustainable Deals, Omar Ali?

In this thought‑provoking Market Access Podcast episode, host Stefan Walzer sits down with Omar Ali – Head of Payers at Vipora, former NICE advisor, and one of the sharpest minds in drug pricing and innovative contracting to unpack where drug pricing and reimbursement are really heading.They explore why cost‑effectiveness thresholds are making market access tougher than ever, how uncertainty around CAR‑T, gene therapies and orphan drugs fuels the “orphan bubble”, how innovative contracting and pay‑for‑performance can (sometimes) rescue multi‑million‑euro therapies and why the US is doing HTA at the end, not the beginning – with CMS negotiations, MFN and tariffs reshaping global pricing strategies.If you work in Market Access, pricing, Health Economics and Outcomes Research (HEOR) or policy, this conversation will resonate with the pressures you feel every day.Stay connected by subscribing on your favorite podcast platform or listening directly on our website: MAP Podcasts —and if you enjoyed the episode, don’t forget to rate it and the podcast!MAP is the first and only bi-weekly market access podcast provided by MArS—and the global #1 podcast in the field of health economics. For more information about MArS Market Access and Pricing Strategy, visit: https://marketaccess4-0.com/#MarketAccess #OrphanDrugs #RareDisease #DrugPricing #HealthEconomics #CostEffectiveness #BudgetImpact #RealWorldEvidence #InnovativeContracting #GeneTherapy #HealthcarePolicy #Payers #MAPPodcast #marketaccess #marketaccesspodcast