Cost-effectiveness of midomafetamine-assisted therapy (MDMA-AT) in chronic and treatment-resistant post-traumatic stress disorder of moderate or higher severity: A health-economic model.

For patients with chronic PTSD of moderate or higher severity, MDMA-assisted therapy may be cost-effective compared to placebo with therapy in US healthcare settings. A health state-transition model estimated an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of $83,845 per quality-adjusted life year, below a $150,000 willingness-to-pay threshold. Total direct costs were $64,745 for MDMA-AT and $33,132 for placebo with therapy. MDMA-AT generated 3.691 QALYs over 5 years versus 3.314 for placebo with therapy, a gain of 0.377 QALYs. Costs for PTSD healthcare visits and other PTSD treatments were lower with MDMA-AT. The highest MDMA medication cost to remain under the threshold was $20,314 per session.

Study at a glance

Abstract

To explore the cost-effectiveness of midomafetamine-assisted therapy (MDMA-AT) compared to placebo with therapy (PT) in US healthcare settings. A health state-transition model was used to analyze the cost-effectiveness of MDMA-AT for treating patients with chronic PTSD of moderate or higher severity. Both treatment arms consisted of 3 preparation (90-min), 3 interventional (8-h), and 9 integration (90-min) sessions, lasting ~4 months total. All sessions included psychotherapy, with interventional also including MDMA or placebo. After receiving treatment, patients were distributed across health states of No PTSD (not meeting PTSD diagnostic criteria), Non-Severe PTSD (treatment responders), Severe PTSD (treatment non-responders), and death. Each state had unique healthcare costs and utilities sourced from real-world data analysis and patient data from MDMA-AT clinical trials (including long-term follow-up). The base-case analysis considered the payer's perspective with a 5-year horizon, 3.5% annual cost and effect discounts, and an assumed MDMA medication price of $12,000 per session. Trial-derived utilities and US life tables mortality data were used to calculate quality-adjusted life years (QALY). The main outcome was an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) with a $150,000 willingness-to-pay (WTP) threshold. The base-case ICER was $83,845 per QALY. Total direct costs were $64,745 in the MDMA-AT and $33,132 in the PT arms ($31,613 increment). The costs of intervention were $48,376 for MDMA-AT and $12,376 for PT. The highest MDMA medication cost to fit under the WTP threshold was $20,314 per session. Costs related to PTSD healthcare visits and other PTSD treatments were lower with MDMA-AT than PT (-$2,511 and -$1,877 increments, respectively). Utility benefits were higher in MDMA-AT than PT, with 3.691 and 3.314 QALYs generated over 5 years, respectively (0.377 QALY increment). These data suggest MDMA-AT may be a cost-effective treatment compared to PT for patients with chronic PTSD of moderate or higher severity.