Biosimilar medications could play a key role in driving down drug prices by introducing more competition, Arthritis and Rheumatism Associates rheumatologist and American College of Rheumatology Chairman Dr. Angus Worthing writes in a recent opinion piece on The Hill.
However, despite Congress having created a path for biosimilars in the 2010 Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA), biosimilars have enjoyed little more than a small portion of the U.S. market.
“Biosimilars are lowering the price of biologics in the U.S., being priced 35 percent lower than the originator biologic,” Worthing writes. “Yet, well after FDA approval, they only represent six percent of the market.”
For example, since the BPCIA’s approval, the FDA has approved six tumor necrosis factor inhibitors biosimilars, but only two have hit the market.
