✦ Over the past five years, biosimilars created competition that resulted in savings of $9.8 billion. That’s according to Amgen Inc.’s 2021 Biosimilar Trends Report, its eighth edition. The therapies also have the potential to save people out-of-pocket costs of $238 million in the nine classes in which the agents have been approved. The drugs are launching with wholesale acquisition costs that are generally between 15% and 37% less than those of their reference products.
Anthem Launches Voluntary Oncology Dose Reduction Program
As payers continue to search for ways to reduce their drug spend, one health plan recently rolled out a dose reduction program for some oncology therapies. Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield is asking providers in ce...
Another Immunotherapy Indication Will Be Withdrawn
The seventh indication since late December for an immunotherapy is being withdrawn from the U.S. market. All of the indications were granted through accelerated approval. All of the affected therapies have other FDA...
Padcev Approval Gives Another Option to Treat Bladder Cancer
The FDA recently expanded the indication of a drug for certain types of urothelial cancer, the most common form of bladder cancer. Payers and oncologists appear to be divided, however, on the drug’s place in a tre...
New FDA Specialty Approvals
✦ July 30: The FDA granted premarket approval to Pillar Biosciences, Inc.’s ONCO/Reveal Dx Lung and Colon Cancer Assay as a companion diagnostic for all FDA-approved epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kin...
News Briefs
✦ The FDA is requiring revisions to the labels of Pfizer Inc.’s Xeljanz/Xeljanz XR (tofacitinib), Eli Lilly and Co.’s Olumiant (baricitinib) and AbbVie Inc.’s Rinvoq (upadacitinib) following the agency’s r...
FDA Approval Gives Third Option to Treat Rare, Deadly Disease
The FDA recently approved a third agent to treat paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH). With some conditions, that number of treatments may prompt payer preferencing, but that is unlikely to happen with this ult...
MedPAC Suggests Biosimilars Are Helping Bring Down ASPs
While total Medicare spending on all Part B drugs continued to rise from 2018 to 2019, a Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) report found that average sales prices (ASPs) for some traditionally costly drug...
BioMatrix Continues to Expand Its Capabilities Via Deals
While specialty pharmacy merger and acquisition activity has certainly slowed, one independent specialty pharmacy continues to snap up other complementary organizations — and, as a result, may find the M&A foc...
What Do Employers Need to Know About Specialty Drugs?
Employers have long been concerned about costs for specialty therapies, but some may have been hesitant about putting too many restrictions on them. However, as these drugs continue to come onto the market with high...