Not So Different: How Pharmacists Can Help Boost Biosimilar Uptake
Sonia T. Oskouei, PharmD, BCMAS, DPLA, from Cardinal Health, highlights ways pharmacists can be proactive in the effort to improve biosimilar uptake in the United States.
As the US biosimilar industry continues to expand, physicians, payers, and pharmaceutical companies have been at the forefront of the discussion on how to increase biosimilar uptake and education efforts. However, pharmacists also have a role to play in sharing information and encouraging uptake.
The lack of interchangeability designations for US biosimilars prevents pharmacists from being able to switch out costly originator drugs with more affordable biosimilars. They must get approval from a physician first. There are other ways, though, that pharmacists can help uptake efforts.
We sat down with Sonia T. Oskouei, PharmD, BCMAS, DPLA, vice president of Biosimilars at Cardinal Health to discuss the power that pharmacists have in facilitating biosimilar uptake in the United States and what health care organizations can do to empower pharmacists further.
To learn more about Sonia’s work, click here.
To learn more about pharmacists’ role in promoting biosimilars, click here.
