News

With rising concern over rising drug prices, policymakers have sought a better understanding of the roles of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) in the drug supply chain and plans' and PBMs' efforts to manage Part D drug spending and use.

Samsung Bioepis has begun recruiting patients with paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) in India for a phase 3 clinical study of its proposed eculizumab biosimilar, SB12, referencing Soliris.

The Center for Biosimilars® recaps the top stories for the week of August 12, 2019.

A recent study of a rapid point-of-care (POC) test shows that it is virtually identical at detecting antidrug antibodies (ADAs) to a biosimilar infliximab, SB2 (Renflexis, Flixabi), as a standard enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and is suitable for therapeutic drug monitoring of any infliximab product.

LG Chem’s biosimilar etanercept, LBEC0101, referencing Enbrel, recently gained approval in Japan and the Republic of Korea. Among the data that led to its authorization were those deriving from a phase 3 study that demonstrated the biosimilar had equivalent efficacy and a comparable safety profile to the reference product. Recently, researchers reported on a single-arm, open-label extension study in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who completed the 52-week phase 3 study.

In its August 2019 network bulletin, UnitedHealthcare indicated that, beginning October 1, 2019, biosimilar bevacizumab (Mvasi) and biosimilar trastuzumab (Kanjinti), both made by Amgen, will be preferred products for commercial and community plans.

Negotiations between Congress and the Trump administration over ratification and implementation of the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA) have picked up speed in recent weeks. The USMCA was signed on November 30, 2018, ostensibly as a replacement for the original North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

Bio-Thera Solutions, a global biotechnology company based in Guangzhou, China, says it began a phase 1 study of BAT2506, a proposed golimumab biosimilar referencing Simponi.

Regeneron’s aflibercept (Eylea) has been approved by the FDA for a prefilled syringe (PFS) presentation. The 2-mg, single-dose, PFS will offer the greater ease of use less preparation than the vial presentation of the drug used to treat a range of eye disorders.

This week, a pair of papers detailing the clinical program for the biosimilar appeared in Pharmacology Research and Perspectives.

Concerns about overseas inspections continue in the wake of an HHS plan to create 2 potential pathways to allow the importation of some drugs that were intended for foreign markets.

This month, researchers published data from a phase 3 study of the biosimilar in patients with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis (RA) after previous phase 3 data were reported for a study in patients with severe plaque psoriasis.

Instead of the “totality of the evidence” approach to biosimilars, authors of a new paper propose a “confirmation of sufficient likeness” paradigm.

A recent article described a quality improvement project at the oncology specialty pharmacy unit within the University of Chicago Medicine.

The Canadian government has announced amendments to its regulations concerning patented drugs that it says will make medicines more affordable. According to Health Canada, these changes will save Canadians $13.2 billion (US $9.97 billion) over the next decade.

A judge for the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey has ruled in favor of Amgen in a long-running patent litigation concerning Sandoz’s biosimilar etanercept, Erelzi.

Among the patients who viewed positively framed video explanations of biosimilars, 67% were willing to switch.

Winnie Tiedemann, 73, of New Jersey lives with her son and his 5 children. Tiedemann was diagnosed with diabetes at age 25 and has been insulin-dependent for the past 20 or so years. Her out of pocket costs for insulin? Around $3600 a year.

The study was conducted in patients with moderately to severely active rheumatoid arthritis who previously completed the VOLTAIRE-RA study.

A panel of judges for the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has denied Genentech’s motion to block sales of Amgen’s biosimilar trastuzumab pending the outcome of an ongoing appeal.

There remain many uncertainties and questions around the success of these agents. It is therefore critical for sponsors and other stakeholders to consider some of the potential hurdles and policy shifts facing anticancer biosimilar uptake and ultimately reimbursement in the United States.

The Center for Biosimilars® recaps the top stories for the week of August 5, 2019.

The August issue of JAMA Oncology features a Viewpoint that puts forth a free-market solution to lower high drug costs by changing dosing regimens without hurting efficacy using the approach of interventional pharmacoeconomics (IVPE).

OneOncology, a national partnership of community oncology practices, says that its partner practices have begun treating patients with 2 anticancer biosimilars: Kanjinti, a trastuzumab biosimilar referencing Herceptin, and Mvasi, a bevacizumab biosimilar referencing Avastin.

In its semiannual drug pricing forecast, healthcare performance company Vizient said that biosimilars will be a key part of combatting rising spending on drugs among its membership.

Anti–tumor necrosis factor medicines are one of the costliest drugs for many health systems, and in the United Kingdom, a recent article described how one clinical commissioning group managed the switch of patients on the originator etanercept (Enbrel) to a biosimilar (Benepali) using a fixed-price model.

The International Generic and Biosimilars Medicines Association (IGBA), which represents generic and biosimilar medicines associations worldwide, recently released its report on how trade agreements can foster generic and biosimilar medicines and improve patient access to care.

A study published this month proposes that biosimilars be assessed in a quantitative benefit-risk analysis to assess whether what the authors call “uncertainty in the clinical performance of biosimilars” can be countered by lower pricing.

Not everyone shares the view that authorized generics are a boon, and concerns are rising that the marketplace may soon see the advent of authorized biologics.

The retrospective analysis of practice care delivery measures at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center showed substantial time savings for both patients and the healthcare system, researchers report.