Hulio

Biosimilar Drug Profile: Hulio is an FDA-approved biosimilar version of adalimumab (reference product, Humira^®, AbbVie).

Originally known as FKB327, Mylan, which is responsible for commercialization of Hulio, submitted a biologic license application for approval via the 351(k) biosimilar pathway in the third quarter of 2019 (the application date was not publicly announced). The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the biosimilar on July 6, 2020. This agent was approved in the European Union in October 2018 and has launched there.

Though approved in the US, it is not yet marketed here. Like several other manufacturers of approved biosimilar versions of adalimumab, Mylan (now known as Viatris) and its partner Fujifilm Kyowa Kirin Biologics signed a licensing agreement with AbbVie; under the agreement, it will able to launch the drug in August 2023.

Mylan and Fujifilm Kyowa Kirin Biologics initiated a manufacturing and marketing relationship in 2018 for this agent. Mylan (now Viatris) is headquartered in Pittsburgh, whereas Fujifilm Kyowa Kirin Biologics has its headquarters in Tokyo. Mylan has been an active player in the biosimilar field. It recently rebranded itself Viatris after acquiring Pfizer’s Upjohn subsidiary. Mylan also has partnerships with Biocon for several biosimilar products, including approved bevacizumab and pegfilgrastim biosimilars, an insulin follow-on product, and several investigational biosimilars. Fujifilm launched its Kyowa Kirin Biologics subsidiary in 2012, and it is also working on a biosimilar version of bevacizumab, which it will develop and commercialize through Centus Biopharmaceuticals (a joint venture with AstraZeneca).

Abrilada was the fifth adalimumab biosimilar to be approved by the FDA. It, like its competitors, is not yet available on the US market because of licensing agreements signed with the manufacturer of the reference product, AbbVie.

(July 6, 2020) On July 6, the Food and Drug Administration approved partners Mylan/Fujifilm Kyowa Kirin Biologics’ biosimilar version of adalimumab for use in patients with autoimmune diseases.

(November 20, 2019) Pfizer announced November 18th that the biosimilar licensing application (BLA) for its adalimumab biosimilar was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

(August 5, 2019) “Today, Momenta announced the Company will cease active development of M923 at this time, due to changes in the market opportunity associated with Humira patent litigation settlements,” according to a company press release.

(July 24, 2019) In a busy beginning of the week, the US Food and Drug Administration approved new biosimilars for Humira and Rituxan. Samsung Bioepis gained approval for Hadlima™ (adalimumab-bwwd), and Pfizer scored with Ruxience™ (rituximab-pvvr).

(July 12,  2019) Samsung Bioepis and Genentech filed a motion in District Court to drop all pending patent litigation regarding Ontruzant, an approved Herceptin biosimilar.

(May 15, 2019) This agreement allows Boehringer Ingelheim to enter the marketplace July 1, 2023, getting a slight jump on some other licensees, but it effectively ends the protracted patent litigation that Boehringer hoped to win.

(January 28, 2019) At least 8 biosimilar manufacturers have signed licensing agreements with Abbvie, which allow immediate European launches for approved adalimumab biosimilars and sequentially timed US launches in 2023. This database displays the manufacturer, product name, and date of anticipated launch. Note: not all of these biosimilar adalimumab are approved in the US.

(January 28, 2019) Coherus becomes the eighth biosimilar maker to sign a licensing agreement with Abbvie, and it also becomes the first biosimilar maker to sue another (Amgen) for patent infringement.

(December 17, 2018) Earlier this month, Pfizer notified the European Medicines Agency (EMA) that it was withdrawing one of its two applications for approval of its biosimilar adalimumab.

(November 28, 2018)  Boehringer has now announced its intention to discontinue all efforts to market and develop any biosimilars outside of the US market.

(November 27, 2018)  According to the announcement, Pfizer will market this agent (PF-06410293), if approved by the Food and Drug Administration, in November 2023.

(November 1, 2018)  The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced yesterday the approval of adalimumab-adaz from Sandoz. The new agent, dubbed Hyrimoz™, will not be launched in the US until 2023.

(October 24, 2018) In part two and the conclusion of this interview, Molly Burich, MS, Director, Public Policy: Biosimilars and Pipeline, speaks to Boehringer Ingelheim’s progress in Cytelzo interchangeability studies, its plans for the product in Europe in the face of several adalimumab biosimilars launches in the EU, and also the complexity inherent in CMS’s plans to move biologic agents from part B to part D coverage.

(October 23, 2018)  In the first portion of a two-part interview with Molly Burich, MS, Director, Public Policy: Biosimilars and Pipeline, Boehringer Ingelheim, we cover the challenges of driving biosimilar uptake, as well as the unique situation that has focused this manufacturer’s attention on biosimilars and interchangeability.

(August 10, 2018)  Some of these tactics are a bit late to the party, as commercial insurers and health plans have been employing them for years. To the extent that an injectable treatment can be managed through the pharmacy benefit rather than the medical benefit, the drug can be easily subjected to prior authorization, step therapy, quantity limits, and other tools routinely used.

(August 3, 2018) A long-sought dream in the United States will be a welcome reality in Europe this October: a stampede for Abbvie’s marketshare with adalimumab biosimilars and the savings that go with it.

(June 22, 2018) In its recent investor conference, the company disclosed that it is ready to send M923, its adalimumab biosimilar, to the agency for approval.

(April 6, 2018) Samsung Bioepis and Biogen has reached a deal with Abbvie that would enable it to market its biosimilar adalimumab (should it be granted approval) in June 2023.

(February 5, 2018) AbbVie executives are sticking to their pledge to restrict annual price increases on Humira^® below 10%, but even payer price protections won’t mitigate the increasing expenditures before adalimumab biosimilars hit the market.

(January 16, 2019) Sandoz announced that it has thrown its hat in the ring for another Humira biosimilar.

(October 3, 2017) Authorized generics have been around for a couple of decades. They can be a challenge to payers, health systems, and patients who are seeking the price-reduction benefits borne out of normal competition. The Amgen-Abbvie agreement for the former’s adalimumab biosimilar is right out of this playbook.

(August 29, 2017) Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced August 29 that it had received approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its first biosimilar.

(July 28, 2017)  One biosimilar developer announced on July 27 that it is embarking on a study specifically to prove interchangeability of its biosimilar version of adalimumab.

(July 12, 2017) FDA Advisory Committee members considered the data package provided by Amgen to be comprehensive, but the 26-0 vote was not without some interesting points and drama.

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