Willingness to pay for medications among patients with Rome IV Irritable Bowel Syndrome

BACKGROUND: Little is known about willingness to pay for medications among individuals with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). METHODS: We collected demographic, gastrointestinal symptom, psychological health, quality of life, and healthcare usage data from 752 adults with Rome IV‐defined IBS. We examined willingness to pay for a hypothetical medication in return for improvement in IBS symptoms using a contingent valuation method, according to these variables. RESULTS: The median amount of money individuals was willing to pay was £1–£50 (IQR £0–£100) per month for a medication with a 100% chance of improving IBS symptoms. Women, compared with men, (92.7% willing to pay “£0,” 89.8% “£1–£50,” 87.3% “£51–£100,” 78.9% “£101–£200,” and 78.5% “more than £200,” p = 0.008) were less likely to be willing to pay for a pill with a 100% chance of improving IBS symptoms whilst those with an annual income of £30,000 or more (12.2% willing to pay “£0,” 25.2% “£1–£50,” 33.5% “£51–£100,” 40.2% “£101–£200,” and 35.1% “more than £200,” p = 0.002) were more likely. We observed a higher willingness to pay among those with lower IBS‐related quality of life (p = 0.002 for trend). Of all 752 individuals, 92.7%, 74.5%, and 58.0% would be willing to pay for a medication that would give them a 100%, 50%, or 30% chance of improving IBS symptoms, respectively. CONCLUSION: Patients with IBS are willing to pay for medications which improve IBS symptoms. Future studies should investigate the relative importance of medication pricing, efficacy, and side effect profile among individuals with IBS.