Prime leaders discuss the emerging opportunity for biosimilars

MILI and Prime Therapeutics leadership led a virtual panel discussion on Oct. 13, 2021 titled “The Changing Market of Biosimilars.” Moderated by Pinar Karaca-Mandic, MILI’s academic director and finance professor at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management, this webinar introduced the biosimilars landscape. Prime’s Chief Medical Officer Joseph Leach, M.D., along with Chief Trade Relations Officer Kelly Pokuta, PharmD, and Brett Sahli, PharmD, assistant vice president of MedDrive™ also overviewed coverage and pricing of biosimilars, provider-level factors influencing uptake, legislative challenges, and manufacturer perspectives.

This topic is important now because biologics have revolutionized the treatment of care, but often at high prices. The Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA) of 2010 created a pathway for approval and market launch of “biosimilar” products with the goal of introducing affordable alternatives and enhancing competition. As the biosimilar market evolves with new biosimilars coming to market, it is essential to consider patient, provider, payer, manufacturer, and policy dynamics that influence uptake and affordability.

According to Dr. Leach, “We want people to have access to these really important drugs. But we also need to address the financial toxicity. The cost of health care is spiraling and much of that spiraling cost is this class of drugs.”

Leach continued, “This is a class of drugs that does not harm patients. These drugs really are equally effective to the originators; they don’t worsen patient experience. They really are functionally just as good, they’re just cheaper. An opportunity where we can reduce costs without negatively impacting patients is something we need to latch onto. Any lost opportunity for increasing uptake and utilization is just a lost opportunity for all of us. So if we think about why these important? That’s why. Hopefully this pipeline will continue to deliver, and we can continue to deliver this message to people who need these drugs and people who prescribe these drugs. We need to increase utilization.”

Watch the webinar recording to learn more about the biosimilar landscape and what Prime is doing in the medical drug management space to improve their uptake.