Policy

We sat down with Jennifer Snow, MPH, vice president of Reimbursement and Policy Insights at Xcenda, to talk about health care reform efforts and how these would be affected by the change in administration.

To spur more biosimilar development and reduce anticompetitive practices, the company argued the FDA could improve its interpretation of the term “strength” in the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA).

In November, the Supreme Court heard arguments on the Affordable Care Act, Europe fired up its efforts to create a more biosimilar-friendly environment, and Genentech fought to protect its bevacizumab franchise.

The European Commission (EC) said it will take the lessons learned from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and build a better marketplace for generics and biosimilars.

Bincy P. Abraham, MD, explains that even when payers allow coverage for biosimilars, providers may still be hesitant to use them.

Prior to the turmoil of the pandemic, the FDA and CMS were at work on shoring up the biosimilars market, and this work continues on various fronts, a regulatory/policy expert explains.

Despite a rocky power transition at the federal level, the compass heading for biosimilars is unchanged, said policy expert Molly Burich.

In Europe, the pandemic has revealed problems within health care systems and the need to increase access to biosimilars and reform health care policies.

Medicines for Europe, a generic and biosimilar trade association, contends in a white paper that legal and regulatory loopholes increasingly keep competing drugs off the market.

This study of specialty drug spending looks beyond rebates to evaluate growth in spending from 2010 to 2017.

The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) has joined with other provider groups in opposing a UnitedHealthcare (UHC) plan that could increase patient out-of-pocket costs.

Arnold Ventures suggests ways the FDA and other governmental entities can get more biosimilars into circulation, faster.

A retrospective analysis of data from the US Veterans Affairs Healthcare System database provides positive switching data for infliximab products.

Overcoming biosimilar uptake barriers will take collaboration and policy change by hospitals, infusion clinics, and health plans, presenters said at the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy Nexus 2020 Virtual conference.

An Avalere analysis suggests costs are more moderate and lower under a no–step therapy scenario for patients with Crohn disease.

Before its acquisition this year, Dean Foods attempted a specialty drug carve-out to save with biosimilars and generics.

As the United States continues to struggle to increase biosimilar uptake, presenters at the DIA 2020 Biosimilars Conference offered insight into what other countries have done to encourage biosimilar use.

Over the past decade, savings from biosimilars have grown; however, there remain barriers that prevent biosimilar savings from reaching their full potential, according to a report from the Association for Accessible Medicines.

Germany could eke out more gains from biosimilars on top of its already impressive savings, investigators write.

A diverse panel from practice, payer, and wholesale perspectives convened at The American Journal of Managed Care®'s Patient-Centered Oncology Care® 2020 virtual conference to hash out one of the hottest issues in biosimilar availability right now.

Debra Patt, MD, PhD, MBA, discusses issues affecting biosimilar uptake at the Patient-Centered Oncology Care® 2020 virtual conference.

Much emphasis is placed on the value of congressional action to reduce prescription costs, but the Center for American Progress suggests there is an existing toolkit to accomplish this objective.

The United States has missed out on almost $20 billion in savings as a result of not having a competitive biosimilar market, according to findings from the Pacific Research Institute.

Many patients with rheumatic diseases are unsure whether their prescriptions are biosimilars, suggesting more efforts in patient education are needed.

This summer, The Center for Biosimilars® interviewed several experts for their opinions on the current need for biosimilars and how companies are working to overcome barriers to uptake. Here are some highlights.

Surya Singh, MD, president and owner of Singh Healthcare Advisors LLC in Lexington, Massachusetts, discussed the future for the US adalimumab market and whether biosimilars can deliver on the promise of lower cost health care.

Some European markets are more formidable than others with regard to complexity and getting biosimilars established, but there are good places to start, Jonathan Sweeting, head of Europe for Samsung Bioepis, explains.

Authors of a report on Medicare spending trends said there’s more to controlling the affordability of insulin than instituting out-of-pocket (OOP) caps.

It’s same old, same old when it comes to pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) contracts despite much touted reforms, authors of a review contend.

To help employers achieve biosimilar savings, the Midwest Business Group on Health has created a 13-step action plan.