Biocomparables (known as biosimilars in other countries) have a very important role in promoting the sustainability of health systems, not only in Mexico but worldwide, implying significant savings for patients, payers and health institutions as well as market opening, which provides a fair competitive ground.

In Mexico, the regulatory body for drug approval is the Federal Commission for the Protection against Sanitary Risks (Comisión Federal para la Protección contra Riesgos Sanitarios, COFEPRIS). COFEPRIS, which implemented the health regulation for the authorization of biotechnological drugs as of 2012, uses the terminology of biocomparables for off-patent biologicals that have opted for the comparability approval pathway [1, 2].

In Mexico, therefore, biocomparables are referred to comparable biotechnology drugs and these should not be confused with the so-called ‘similar’ drugs, which are described as ‘copies of small molecule generics that have not been subjected to bioequivalence testing’ [2].

Currently, in Mexico and in other Latin American countries, both innovator biological drugs and authorized biocomparable drugs are marketed and distributed with the same International Nonproprietary Name (INN) of the active substance, see Table 1.
If the products are on the list of essential drugs, this administrative process, regulated by the Secretariat of Health under the General Council of Health, favours these products to be interchanged indiscriminately in order to facilitate competitive supply and demand, or availability of the drug. However, the latter is problematic in clinical terms, especially with regard to traceability [3].

In Mexico, in general terms, the country's health authority has not adopted differentiated nomenclature criteria in the regulation for the authorization of biocomparables.

There are currently 13 biocomparables approved in Mexico [4].

This article is the third in a series of articles on the nomenclature of biological and biosimilar medicines in various Latin American countries.

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References
1. Iglesias Galiano M. Situación de la nomenclatura de biológicos y biosimilares en países de referencia, países de la región y del Perú propuestas de implementación. 2021.
2. GaBI Online – Mexican guidelines for biocomparables [www.gabionline.net]. Mol, Belgium: Pro Pharma Communications International; [cited 2015 Mar 18]. Available from:
www.gabionline.net/guidelines/Mexican-guidelines-for-biocomparables
3. Xibille D, Carrillo S, Huerta-Sil G, et al. Current state of biosimilars in Mexico: the position of the Mexican College of Rheumatology, 2016. Reumatol Clin [Engl Ed]. 2018;14(3):127-36.
4. GaBI Online - Generics and Biosimilars Initiative. Biocomparables approved in Mexico [www.gabionline.net]. Mol, Belgium: Pro Pharma Communications International; [cited 2022 Mar 18].

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