Team AIPM

Marcel Canoy is an economist and public policy expert with broad expertise in market regulation, healthcare, and European policy. He is Professor at the VU Amsterdam and serves as Scientific Director at VitaValley. He also advises the Autoriteit Consument & Markt on healthcare-related issues. His current work focuses on the functioning of markets and regulation in healthcare and beyond, with a strong interest in societal value and innovation. Marcel is a prolific author and commentator, frequently contributing to public debate through books, media appearances, and articles in leading Dutch newspapers.

Katalin Gaspar is a health economist specializing in pharmaceutical policy and healthcare financing. She is a Visiting Fellow at VU Amsterdam. Her work focuses on leveraging real-world evidence to inform pharmaceutical policy, including pricing, utilisation, and treatment dynamics across European healthcare systems. She has led and contributed to national-level studies in the Netherlands on healthcare financing, cost-sharing, and solidarity. Katalin’s research combines quantitative methods with strong policy relevance, supporting evidence-based decision-making on access, affordability, and the long-term sustainability of healthcare systems.

Xander Koolman is a health economist specializing in pharmaceutical markets, healthcare financing, and provider behavior. He is a professor at the VU Amsterdam and has extensive experience analyzing pricing, competition, and regulation in drug markets. His research focuses on how incentives and market structures influence access, affordability, and innovation in pharmaceuticals. He has advised Dutch policymakers on the design of effective pharmaceutical policies and reimbursement systems.

Mariska Koster has a background as a pulmonologist with expertise in oncology and palliative care. She currently combines advisory and supervisory roles with research at VU Amsterdam, focusing on pharmaceutical markets and innovation in the bio-life sciences. Her work centers on strategic decision-making, stakeholder engagement at the executive

level, and the assessment of healthcare innovations, with a strong emphasis on sustainable healthcare systems and value-based approaches to medicines and care.

Tessa Marsman is a pharmaceutical policy advisor and academic researcher specializing in high-cost hospital medicines. She is a Pharmaceutical Policy Advisor at Menzis and a PhD Candidate at VU Amsterdam. Her work focuses on pharmaceutical policy and the development of pharmaceutical markets under different forms of competition, with particular attention to pricing, reimbursement, utilization, and therapeutic competition. By combining practical policy experience with academic research, she contributes to evidence-based decision-making on access to medicines, sustainable financing, and healthcare innovation.

Senior researcher Talma Institute

Niek Stadhouders is a health economist focusing on cost containment and managed competition in the Dutch healthcare system. In relation to pharmaceutical policy, Niek worked on estimating cost effectiveness thresholds for the Netherlands.

Wouter van Straaten is a strategy consultant and academic researcher specializing in life sciences and health policy. He is a Manager at Vintura and a PhD Candidate in pharmaceutical policy at the VU Amsterdam. His work focuses on bridging strategy and evidence, supporting healthcare organizations and policymakers with data-driven insights on pharmaceutical markets, access to medicines, and health system innovation. He has experience across consulting and research, including roles in innovation and business development, with a strong interest in improving patient access and the effectiveness of healthcare systems.