Value-based agreement between Prime Therapeutics and Biohaven aims to bring NURTEC™ ODT acute migraine treatment financial protection to health plans

EAGAN, Minn. – Up to 55% of migraine patients do not have sufficient relief with currently available treatments.² NURTEC™ ODT (rimegepant) can work quickly, returning patients to normal function in as little as one hour.¹ NURTEC ODT’s manufacturer, Biohaven Pharmaceutical Holding Company Ltd. (NYSE: BHVN), and pharmacy benefit manager Prime Therapeutics LLC (Prime) recently entered into a value-based contract agreement to help ensure that relief truly comes for patients.

The value-based contract seeks to offer Prime’s health plan clients financial protection from high member use of the medicine. At the same time, it guards NURTEC ODT’s price to value across the varying acute treatment needs of migraine patients.

Gaining U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval in February 2020, NURTEC ODT is the first FDA-approved drug from Biohaven. This quick-dissolving tablet is convenient for people suffering from migraine. It can be taken without water and is the first and only calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) receptor antagonist available in a quick-dissolve orally disintegrating tablet (ODT) formulation.¹

In February 2020, the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) issued a policy recommendation report on acute treatment of migraine. The review of NURTEC ODT and other similar treatments found the price range “helps maximize health overall, because they do not contribute to affordability concerns and loss of insurance.”³

“Collaborative manufacturer involvement was imperative for Biohaven and Prime to quickly agree on a value-based agreement,” said Kelly McGrail-Pokuta, vice president, trade relations and strategy at Prime. “Adding NURTEC ODT to our portfolio of value-based contracts strengthens Prime’s commitment to improving outcomes for patients while lowering the total cost of care.”

“We believe NURTEC ODT can deliver relief that people with migraine need to treat their acute attacks and get back to their lives. Ensuring broad patient access is critical. This innovative, outcomes-based agreement with Prime Therapeutics is a key example of our aligned commitment to the patient,” said BJ Jones, chief commercial officer of migraine and common diseases at Biohaven. “Prime Therapeutics, a leading national provider of pharmaceutical benefit, is an important partner of ours as we work together to ensure that millions of patients with migraine have access to NURTEC ODT.”

Nearly 40 million people in the U.S. suffer from migraine4 and the World Health Organization classifies migraine as one of the 10 most disabling medical illnesses.5 Migraine is characterized by debilitating attacks lasting four to 72 hours with multiple symptoms, including pulsating headaches of moderate to severe pain intensity that can be associated with nausea or vomiting, and/or sensitivity to sound (phonophobia) and sensitivity to light (photophobia).6 There is a significant unmet need for new acute treatments as more than 90 percent of migraine sufferers are unable to work or function normally during an attack.

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1. Biohaven’s NURTEC™ ODT (rimegepant) Receives FDA Approval for the Acute Treatment of Migraine in Adults. (2020, February 27). Retrieved October 1, 2020, from https://www.biohavenpharma.com/investors/news-events/press-releases/02-27-2020
2. Lipton RB et al. Headache. 2017;57(7):1026-1040.
3. ICER Issues Final Report and Policy Recommendations on Acute Treatments for Migraine. (2020, February 25). Retrieved October 1, 2020, from https://icer-review.org/announcements/acute_migraine_final_report/
4. Burch R, Rizzoli P, Loder E. The Prevalence and Impact of Migraine and Severe Headache in the United States: Figures and Trends From Government Health Studies. Headache. 2018;58(4):496-505
5. GBD 2016 Headache Collaborators. Global, regional, and national burden of migraine and tension-type headache, 1990-2016: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016. Lancet Neurol 2018;17(11):954-976.
6. Headache Classification Committee of the International Headache Society (IHS). The international classification of headache disorders, 3rd edition. Cephalalgia. 2018;38(1):1–211.