Natural hazard events may seem like distant topics to some in the biopharmaceutical industry, but they hold relevance for all companies. Opportunities exist for risk management, including an important lesson in avoiding the gradual acceptance of such events as normal, until an even greater catastrophic event occurs.
Within the last few years, the FDA has taken steps to approve more biosimilar products and has committed to providing for a competitive landscape. The three latest biosimilars to be approved by the FDA have all been biosimilars to Herceptin. Further, Pfizer’s Trazimera, the most recently approved trastuzumab biosimilar, has sparked intrigue. As a result, Genentech is bracing for Herceptin biosimilar commercial launches in 2019.
Since 2012, patent stakeholders in the U.S. have faced remarkable uncertainty in the evaluation of patent subject matter eligibility under 35 U.S.C. 101, particularly in the application of the Supreme Court’s Alice/Mayo1 test by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
About 12 years ago, while working at a group purchasing organization (GPO), I had my first conversations with pharma/biotech companies about the possibility of developing and launching biosimilar drugs. Part of my role at the GPO was related to tracking and commenting on policies CMS and the FDA were developing.
The U.S. FDA issued an updated draft guidance on March 7 on the nonproprietary naming of biologics, titled Nonproprietary Naming of Biological Products: Update. This update is the FDA’s second attempt at a policy for nonproprietary name suffixes for biologic products.
With the list price of newer drugs rising, policy makers are continuing to debate the cost savings biosimilar medications may offer. To date there are 17 FDA-approved biosimilars targeting various disease states. While biosimilars could slow the dramatic rise in the overall drug spend, many questions about them remain such as litigation, interchangeability, and how they will be integrated into the market. The last question is the most intriguing, and it is heavily dependent on the decision of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) about their formularies.
While the biosimilar market in the U.S. has gotten off to a relatively slow start compared to Europe, where biosimilars have been available since 2006, it has recently gained momentum and will continue to grow in the coming years as more “blockbuster” biologics lose regulatory exclusivity and patent protection. Here we review our observations in the biosimilar space since the enactment of the 2009 Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA) and our view of the future of biosimilars and related patent disputes.
A variety of stakeholders including the FDA, Congress, and hospitals are in agreement — biosimilars have not penetrated the market as expected. A number of governmental bodies have focused on remedies.
The biosimilars pipeline is progressing rapidly and continues to grow, with more products and more organizations involved. This article reviews the current biosimilars development pipeline and progress.
It was the announcement many have been dreading — but expecting — for several months now. Dr. Scott Gottlieb, 23rd Commissioner of the FDA, announced his decision to step down after 663 days (22 months) on the job. The news is sure to raise concerns for many. But I think the biggest surprise is how equally sad thought-leaders within the agency will be to say goodbye.
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