News Briefs

✦ Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) said she plans to issue a subpoena to AbbVie Inc. for documents relating to Humira (adalimumab) and Imbruvica (ibrutinib). Maloney is the chairwoman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform and is seeking information on drug pricing as part of an investigation started by the committee’s former chairman, Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), in January 2019 of 12 drug companies selling 19 of the costliest medications. Maloney, who unveiled her intentions via a Sept. 1 memo, said in that document that during the investigation, “AbbVie repeatedly failed to comply with the Committee’s requests and provided inadequate responses regarding Humira and Imbruvica. AbbVie has produced only limited documents about its pricing practices and strategies to preserve market share and pricing power for both products.” The Hill reports that an AbbVie spokesperson said the company has “provided thousands of documents and [has] had numerous conversations with the Committee staff. While we are surprised and disappointed the Committee chose to take this action, we will continue to work in good faith with them on this important subject.” View the memo at https://bit.ly/2EZEytx.

✦ Mylan N.V. launched the first FDA-approved generic of Biogen’s multiple sclerosis drug Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate) on Aug. 19. The move came two months after the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia ruled in favor of Mylan (RSP 7/20, p. 12), invalidating a Tecfidera patent that wasn’t set to expire until 2028 (No. 1:17-cv-00116-IMK-JPM). Mylan’s drug at the time had an action date of Nov. 16, but the drugmaker worked with the FDA to move that up in the wake of the decision. Mylan did not respond to AIS Health requests for information on the drug’s price, but Evercore ISI analyst Umer Raffat said it was approximately a 14% discount to Tecfidera. According to the National MS Society, Tecfidera’s wholesale acquisition cost was $94,991 as of Nov. 13, 2019. A Jan. 3 Boston Business Journal article says Biogen raised the price 6% this year, putting its annual cost at $100,690. Visit https://bit.ly/2R6JS0H.

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