Disruption in the US adalimumab market

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Disruption in the US adalimumab market

Biosimilares/General | Posted 05/06/2024 0 Post your comment

In April 2024, Evernorth Health Services in the US announced that a biosimilar of AbbVie’s Humira ( adalimumab) will be available for US$0 out of pocket for eligible patients of its specialty pharmacy, Accredo. This announcement follows the news that prescriptions for adalimumab biosimilars have spiked to 36% after leading pharmacy benefit manager CVS Caremark removed the branded reference product from its major national commercial formularies in January 2024.

Humira biosimilars first entered the US in January 2023, led by Amgen’s Amjevita [1]. Now, several biosimilars are available. In February 2024, AbbVie still held 96% of the market, however, with actions of Evernorth and CVS, this may start to reduce.

Evernorth’s high- and low-concentration interchangeable biosimilar will be available starting June 2024. It will be produced for Evernorth's affiliate private label pharmaceutical distributor, Quallent Pharmaceuticals, through agreements with multiple manufacturers. It will be available at US$0 out of pocket for most patients through Quallent's Copay Assistance Program. It is estimated that this will save individual patients circa US$3,500 per year.

CVS Caremark took Humira off its major national commercial formularies in favour of biosimilars, and changes took effect in April 2024 [2]. The large spike in biosimilars sales can largely be attributed to the launch of one particular Sandoz’ biosimilar Hyrimoz [3]. Hyrimoz is jointly marketed with Cordavis, a subsidiary that CVS created to sell any number of biosimilar medicines in the US.

Adalimumab is a monoclonal antibody and is a tumour necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitor used to treat a range of inflammatory conditions including rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease. The originator, Humira first launched in 2003 and has since evolved in many ways including new concentrations, citrate-free versions, latex-free delivery devices, and smaller needle gauges [4, 5].

AbbVie makes more deals delaying adalimumab biosimilars in the US

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References
1. GaBI Online - Generics and Biosimilars Initiative. Coherus: lowest price adalimumab biosimilars announced [www.gabionline.net]. Mol, Belgium: Pro Pharma Communications International; [cited 2024 Jun 5]. Available from: www.gabionline.net/biosimilars/news/coherus-lowest-price-adalimumab-biosimilars-announced
2. GaBI Online - Generics and Biosimilars Initiative. CVS Caremark removes Humira in the US and Sandoz launches Hyrimoz in Europe [www.gabionline.net]. Mol, Belgium: Pro Pharma Communications International; [cited 2024 Jun 5]. Available from:
www.gabionline.net/biosimilars/general/cvs-caremark-removes-humira-in-the-us-and-sandoz-launches-hyrimoz-in-europe
3. GaBI Online - Generics and Biosimilars Initiative. CVS’ Cordavis to launch Sandoz’s Hyrimoz (adalimumab) [www.gabionline.net]. Mol, Belgium: Pro Pharma Communications International; [cited 2024 Jun 5]. Available from: www.gabionline.net/biosimilars/general/cvs-cordavis-to-launch-sandoz-s-hyrimoz-adalimumab
4. GaBI Online - Generics and Biosimilars Initiative. Humira (adalimumab) biosimilars pipeline [www.gabionline.net]. Mol, Belgium: Pro Pharma Communications International; [cited 2024 Jun 5]. Available from: www.gabionline.net/reports/humira-adalimumab-biosimilars-pipeline

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