Sanofi Launches Follow-On Insulin Lispro, Admelog

Sanofi has launched its short-acting follow-on insulin lispro product, Admelog, referencing Eli Lilly’s Humalog. The rapid-acting human insulin analog is indicated to improve glycemic control in adults and children with diabetes and is available in both vials and in a pen (SoloStar) presentation.

Under Sanofi’s “Insulins VALyou Savings Program,” nonfederally insured patients will be eligible for a savings card that will allow them to purchase the product for a total out-of-pocket cost of $99 for a 10-mL vial or $149 for a box of five 3-mL pens for a period of 12 months. After the year is over, patients can re-register for the program. Sanofi says that the savings program will lower out-of-pocket costs for patients (including the uninsured or patients who are commercially insured under high-deductible plans) who would otherwise have to pay the full list price of $90 per 3-mL pen or $233 per 10-mL vial for Admelog.

Michelle Carnahan, head of North America diabetes and cardiovascular for Sanofi, said that the program will help patients to “…gain access to insulins they need to help manage their disease, at a clear and consistent price, regardless of their pharmacy choice."

Sanofi’s list prices for Admelog are approximately 15% lower than the originator Humalog’s prices, and while these savings are modest in comparison to the historical price increases for insulin lispro—when the brand name Humalog first launched in 1996, it cost just $21 per vial—they do reflect a trend in launch prices for follow-on insulins. Basaglar, Boehringer Ingelheim’s insulin glargine follow-on, launched in 2016 at a 15% discount to the branded Lantus and Toujeo.

Admelog was first tentatively approved by the FDA in September 2017 based on its similarity to the originator insulin lispro, and it was then granted final approval in December 2017 after the conclusion of patent litigation with Eli Lilly concluded. In the United States, follow-on insulin products like Admelog are not regulated as biosimilars; because the FDA treats innovator insulins as drugs, rather than as biologic products, treatments such as Admelog are regulated as follow-ons.