In a recent blog post, CEI explored the complexities of compensating patients for their insights. But patients aren’t the only non-HCP stakeholders that the life sciences industry engages. Former public health regulators and individuals affiliated with public or private payers also offer valuable expertise and compensating them appropriately raises its own set of challenges.

 

Tiering Former Regulators and Payers

Similar to patients, former regulators and payers don’t fit neatly into traditional HCP-focused tiering frameworks. Companies often default to a single, fixed hourly rate when engaging these individuals. However, experience and seniority must still be factored in whether a company opts to tier formally or not.

Unlike HCPs, standard tiering indicators such as publications or clinical trial involvement aren’t applicable. Instead, tiering for these individuals typically begins with assessing years of relevant experience. Organizations must decide how to define and quantify this experience, including where to draw thresholds for compensation. For example, one company might compensate individuals with 4-6 years of experience at $300/hour, while another might use a 3-5 year benchmark for the same rate.

 

Seniority and Role Relevance

Seniority is another key consideration. Most organizations seek individuals who held senior management or executive roles in regulatory bodies or payer organizations. However, not all relevant experience begins at the C-suite. Companies must decide whether earlier-career experience, such as time spent in mid-level roles, is applicable to their tiering models.

 

Speaking Experience as a Differentiator

While not a universal standard, some companies consider public speaking experience as an additional factor in tiering and payment decisions. The number and relevance of speaking engagements, especially those given within the last 5-7 years, can help justify higher compensation rates, particularly for engagements focused on public speaking.

 

Aligning Compensation to Organizational Hierarchy

When developing compensation policies, it can be helpful to align hourly rates with levels of organizational seniority. While former senior leaders tend to command the highest rates, other roles — such as directors, managers, or analysts — may also offer valuable insights. Establishing a full rate card that maps compensation to typical organizational roles ensures consistency and clarity in engagements across experience levels.

 

Although FMV assessments for former regulators and payers lack the standardization seen with providers, applying structured evaluation criteria can improve consistency and defensibility. As with any FMV payment practice, documentation and consistency is key in successful implementation.