AAM Biosimilars Council Urges Supreme Court To Prioritize Access To Biosimilar Medicines

The Biosimilars Council, a division of the Association for Accessible Medicines (AAM), formerly the Generic Pharmaceutical Association, urges the Supreme Court to recognize that biosimilar medicines can generate billions of dollars in patient and health system savings – but only if patients can access them in a timely manner, as Congress directed.

Congress passed the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA) with the express purpose of bringing lower cost biosimilar medicines to patients at the earliest possible date, while maintaining a generous 12 year exclusivity period for expensive, branded biologics. The Federal Circuit’s decision would delay patient access to biosimilars, which was never Congress’s intent. Court-imposed adoption of this additional six month monopoly would cost patients, taxpayers, and private payers billions of dollars in increased prescription drug spending. AAM urges the Supreme Court to recognize the importance of biosimilar medicines in promoting patient access to affordable health care, by overturning this unintended windfall for brand name biologic manufacturers.

Read the AAM amicus brief: http://bit.ly/2l3dH2W

The Generic Pharmaceutical Association (GPhA) is now AAM. Read more: http://accessiblemeds.org/campaign-expand-access-to-medicines/

About AAM

AAM is driven by the belief that access to safe, quality, effective medicine has a tremendous impact on a person’s life and the world around them. Generic and biosimilar medicines improve people’s lives, improving society and the economy in turn. AAM represents the manufacturers and distributors of finished generic pharmaceuticals and biosimilars, manufacturers and distributors of bulk pharmaceutical chemicals, and suppliers of other goods and services to the generic industry. Generic pharmaceuticals are 89 percent of prescriptions dispensed in the U.S. but only 27 percent of total drug spending. Additional information is available at www.accessiblemeds.org.

About The AAM Biosimilars Council

The Biosimilars Council, a division of the Association for Accessible Medicines (AAM), works to ensure a positive environment for patient access to biosimilar medicines. The Biosimilars Council is a leading source for information about the safety and efficacy of more affordable alternatives to costly brand biologic medicines. Areas of focus include public and health expert education, strategic partnerships, government affairs, legal affairs and regulatory policy. For more information, visit www.biosimilarscouncil.org.