Tag: Remicade

Pfizer’s At-Risk Launch of Inflectra Pays Off (at Least a Bit)

The US Court of Appeals handed Pfizer a big victory in its gamble to bring its biosimilar version of Remicade® to the market before the completion of patent litigation. On January 23, the Appeals Court ruled that Johnson & Johnson’s ‘471 patent in the case was declared invalid, clearing the way for sales of Inflectra® (infliximab-dyyb). Had Pfizer lost the suit, J&J could have sought Inflectra’s (and Samsung/Merck’s Renflexis®’s) revenues in addition to other damage claims.

Remicade’s ‘471 patent expiration was September 2018, but the US Patent and Trademark Office earlier ruling contended that the antibodies at the center of this patent were already included in patents that had previously expired.

Remicade is manufactured and sold by J&J’s subsidiary, Janssen Biotech.

In a widely publicized case, Pfizer sued J&J in September 2017 for anticompetitive practices, which it believes held down the sales of Inflectra to a spare $74 million for the first three quarters of last year. Although J&J is seeking to appeal the decision, with the patent expiration date looming, as well as limited sales of Inflectra, this would seem to be of relatively little benefit.

In any case, J&J is wary of losing marketshare and revenues on Remicade. According to Bloomberg News, Janssen Biotech saw fourth-quarter revenues from the biologic drop almost 10%, to $1.47 billion. Increasing competition from other biologics for similar indications and other biosimilar versions of infliximab worldwide have contributed to reduced sales.

A Pre-Holiday Gift for Pfizer—a Second Infliximab Biosimilar Approval. Now What?

On December 14, Pfizer got an early Christmas present, the approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the second infliximab biosimilar in which it has a stake. First came Inflectra® in 2016, and here comes Ixifi™ (infliximab-qbtx). Unlike Inflectra, which Pfizer markets for Celltrion, Ixifi is Pfizer’s alone—Web image for headera product that was under development at the time of the acquisition.

This of course puts Pfizer in an interesting position. Ixifi would be the third infliximab biosimilar to reach the market, after Inflectra and Samsung/Merck’s Renflexis™. True, Inflectra has limited marketshare in the US, and competition from more heavily discounted Renflexis could compound the situation.

It seems that Ixifi is not intended to reach the US market at all, and may be marketed in other countries where the Celltrion agreement does not hold sway. However, this begs the question: Why did Pfizer decide to go apply for a 351(k) application for FDA approval? That is unclear at this time. Perhaps they will use this biosimilar as insurance if Inflectra does not perform as promised. On the other hand, Pfizer could license it to another manufacturer and collect additional royalties from its sales in the US and overseas.

For those of you who guessed the last choice, congratulations! Under a deal signed in early 2016, Sandoz obtained the rights to market this agent in the European Economic Area. This would enable Pfizer to earn cash rewards and other prizes from two biologics in the same biosimilar category.

Pfizer Sues J&J on Anticompetitive Practices on Infliximab in the US

In late May, Merck was named in a UK lawsuit by Pfizer, which has been trying to expand its market for Inflectra®. Merck, which markets Remicade® (infliximab) in the EU, was accused of anticompetitive practices. On September 20, Pfizer brought a similar complaint against Johnson & Johnson (the parent of Janssen and the manufacturer of Remicade®) in the US, according to a lawsuit filed in US District Court (Eastern District of Pennsylvania).

Whereas Pfizer has made some inroads to the US market, since its launch at the end of 2016, Janssen has done a good job of blocking and tackling—playing the contracting game. The lawsuit claims that Janssen has withheld or threatened to withhold rebates if payers do not keep Remicade in an exclusive preferred position. Pfizer may have invited such action to an extent by entering the market at a 15% discount to the originator’s wholesale acquisition cost (WAC). Many experts expected this type of approach by Janssen. Payers were candid in their reluctance to switch to the biosimilar, especially if Janssen would counter the modest discount with rebates that narrow or eliminate the difference in net costs. In other words, a greater discounted price may have opened the market to Pfizer more rapidly, because Janssen may have been less aggressive in its efforts to match the net cost.

In an August earnings call, Pfizer indicated that although Medicare is covering Inflectra, its overall US marketshare was only 2.3%.

According to the press release announcing Pfizer’s lawsuit, “[Johnson & Johnson’s] exclusionary contracts and other anticompetitive practices have denied U.S. patients access to therapeutic options and undermined the benefits of robust price competition in the innovative and growing biologics marketplace for patients… J&J’s systematic efforts to maintain its monopoly in connection with Remicade® (infliximab) by inappropriately excluding biosimilar competitors violates federal antitrust laws and undermines the principal goals of the federal Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA).”

This may be the first time that routine contracting efforts to defend against generic competition and maintain a monopoly within a drug category have been cited as a violation of antitrust legislation. What may have amplified Pfizer’s ire was its assertion that several insurers originally placed Inflectra at parity coverage with Remicade. These payers changed their position after “J&J threatened to withhold significant rebates unless insurers agreed to effectively block coverage for Inflectra and other infliximab biosimilars.”

Furthermore, the suit claims that clinicians and hospitals were reluctant to purchase Inflectra, with the belief that insurers may not reimburse them for its use. These providers may have been further influenced by an insistence by J&J on their signing contracts that dictated significant discounts on Remicade only if they would not purchase Remicade or other infliximab biosimilars.

At this time, Inflectra is priced at an average 19% discount to Remicade’s wholesale acquisition cost (WAC). Pfizer says that it is offering additional discounts on top of this to persuade payers into covering their biosimilar. Merck’s launch of its own biosimilar infliximab (Renflexis®) comes with a price tag of 35% below that of Remicade, which adds tremendous pressure on payers to reconsider their positions. This also signals the early closing of Pfizer’s window of opportunity as the first biosimilar entrant, on which it gambled an at-risk launch.

The Week in Biosimilar News

You know it’s been a pretty desperate week in the biosimilar blogosphere when twitter feeds relate back to articles published in January, rehashes of the US Supreme Court decision in June, or yet another estimate of the savings potentially ascribed to biosimilar use (based on erroneous assumptions). However, there were a few significant tidbits announced last week that are worth reviewing.

First, Biocon announced that the decision to approve its trastuzumab biosimilar (with partner Mylan) has been delayed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 3 months (until December 3, 2017). According to Biocon, this delay was required so that the FDA could “review some of the clarificatory information submitted as part of the application review process.” Clarificatory? Really? Maybe the extra time was needed to translate the application itself.

Second, a survey of 103 US gastroenterologists raised a couple of questions as to how well information about Inflectra®, the biosimilar to Remicade®, is sinking in on the practice level. According to a press release from Spherix Global Insights, cross-category prescribing may be interfering with the uptake of the biosimilar. They state, “not only is the decline [in Remicade prescriptions] attributed to the adoption of infliximab biosimilars, but use of Humira® has also significantly increased, potentially indicating that more ulcerative colitis patients are being placed on Humira to avoid insurance mandates for infliximab biosimilar use.” This limited survey found that more than one-third of gastroenterologists “agree that if a pharmacy or managed care plan advises them to use Inflectra over Remicade, that they are more likely to choose a different TNF-inhibitor altogether.” This is a weird finding, perhaps indicating nothing more than spite for the health plan’s benefit design. Clearly, if the physicians fully considered the evidence, they would be less likely to prescribe in this way. Admittedly, as notable numbers of managed care organizations have not actually mandated Inflectra use at this point in time, we would have to wait to see if this opinion is validated in actual practice.

Finally, Sanofi announced that it had received tentative approval on a follow-on biologic form of insulin lispro (the originator product was Lilly’s Humalog®). Patent issues will have to be resolved before Sanofi can receive final approval and bring this product to the market. The insulin biosimilars are not regulated under the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act, but rather under the Hatch–Waxman Act—the application was filed as a 505(b)2 rather than a 351(k) variety. They are transitional products, which will considered under the newer regulations after March 23, 2020. We will detail these lesser-known transitional drug categories in a future post.

Inflectra Sales Lagging for Pfizer in Second Quarter

Pfizer announced some disappointing results for the second quarter in its quest to advance a foothold in the biosimilar market. The second-quarter results hinted at more difficulties to come for the Inflectra® brand, with the most recent launch of Merck’s Renflexis®.

Amid somewhat positive signs with group purchasing organizations, which supply hospitals and health systems, commercial health plans have lagged in covering the product. On the earnings call, John Young, Pfizer’s Group President for Pfizer Essential Health, said that in the second quarter, “our Inflectra share was 2.3% of the overall infliximab volume,” including both patients who had not used infliximab before and those who switched to Inflectra. The total US revenue for the quarter was only $23 million. In Europe, sales were $94 million—better but not yet gaining the penetration of other biosimilars in the EU.

The 15% discounting strategy may have limited uptake by US health plans and insurers to date, but Janssen’s actions to defend marketshare have no doubt been effective. Pfizer’s most recent price drop, coinciding roughly with the launch of Merck’s (and Samsung Bioepis’) infliximab biosimilar, will likely muddy this picture in the near term.

Overall, Pfizer’s revenue decreased by 2% (to $12.9 billion) compared with the second quarter of 2016. This is not terrible, considering that its European revenues from Enbrel® (etanercept) continue to be under siege from biosimilars, dropping 20% compared with Q2 2016.

Pfizer’s pipeline remains robust, however, with 8 biosimilars in the works, including 4 in phase 3 trials. Its epoetin alfa product Retacrit® had been rejected by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) because of potential manufacturing concerns. The second-quarter financial report did not update its progress in discussions with FDA.

What Happens When Switching Among Biosimilars?

Late last year, I wrote about a biosimilar challenge that could be on the horizon. With the approval of the second infliximab biosimilar (infliximab-abda by Samsung Bioepis), that horizon is a lot closer. However, we are no closer to understanding how to address the issue.

When Renflexis™ is launched in October (it is unknown whether the US Supreme Court ruling that wiped away the 180-day postapproval waiting period will affect this), 3 noninterchangeable versions of infliximab will be available. Based on patient turnover in health plans, the following scenario will soon occur.

 

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Image Copyright 2017 by Lee Fogel

Mr. Jones, a 39-year-old man with Crohn’s disease, works for a large self-funded employer. He has been taking Remicade®, the reference product, for some time. In January 2018, his employer decides to change its plan offerings. His new health plan does not cover Remicade, favoring Inflectra® (infliximab-dyyb) instead. He could seek a medical exception to continue on Remicade, but his new plan actually offers considerable incentives to switch, including significantly lower cost sharing. After discussing the situation with his doctor, he makes the change, and experiences much the same clinical results. In 2019, his employer makes another change in plan. And this plan covers Renflexis on the specialty tier but has Remicade available on the higher-cost nonpreferred specialty tier. He and his physician are unsure of the best move.

Keep in mind that it would be rare and probably makes little sense for a health plan to cover both biosimilars and the reference product. At some point, the plan will seek a contract that leverages marketshare. In the scenario above, at what point does the patient unduly risk the development of neutralizing or antidrug antibodies?

No data have been published on switches among 3 biosimilar products. These agents are not designated as interchangeable—though Pfizer’s Inflectra may be closest to it based on its NOR-SWITCH investigations; therefore, no one is truly confident of what might or might not occur with regard to efficacy or safety. I suspect it may be some time before switches among reference product, biosimilar A, biosimilar B, or even biosimilar C may be considered routine.

Patients receiving biologic products for serious chronic diseases may also be subject to case/care management. This is not a clean transition when changing health plans. The situation described above will likely happen in the near future with infliximab and possibly adalimumab (once the patent litigation is cleared). It would be a good idea for health plans and insurers to start reviewing their options now to ensure both patient safety and cost-effective decision making.

No Clear Winner on Supreme Court’s Biosimilar Hearing Day

Despite the fact that the arguments at Wednesday’s Supreme Court wrestling match on the patent dance and 180-day notification issue went into overtime, there was no clear winner discernable in Amgen v. Sandoz.

Some observers believe that the Supreme Court justices were more comfortable with Amgen’s arguments, but the justices admitted that there was little clarity in trying to interpret the ambiguous language of the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act. Justice Stephen Breyer stated his unfamiliarity with the technical aspects of the field and expressed concern about ruling on these issues.

Indeed, it is possible that the Court will not issue any ruling, since the case specifically arose around Sandoz’s launch of Zarxio®. Sandoz waited out the 180-day notification period before launching the product, which could prompt the justices to decide that the question is moot, avoiding the larger question of whether it should be enforced for future biosimilar launches.

Judicial experts and industry watchers will be pouring over the comments and questions from the justices for some time, until a final ruling is released (thought to be in July).

In other news… US sales of Janssen’s Remicade® slipped 2.4% to $1.18 billion, in the first full quarter following the launch of its biosimilar competitor, Pfizer’s Inflectra®. This does not necessarily reflect lost marketshare but Janssen’s concessions in matching the price of Inflectra to retain its preferred positioning. With a new competitor looming later this year (Renflexis™), Remicade’s earnings slide is expected to accelerate.

Amgen’s Enbrel® is also facing a less-rosy future, as the product’s sales in the anti-TNF category has begun to slip, independent of any active biosimilar competition. However, competition in the rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis categories from other products, especially interleukin inhibitors, has been stiff. First quarter 2017 sales of Enbrel in the US dropped 15% to $1.18 billion. Sandoz’s biosimilar etanercept, though approved by the FDA and beyond the 180-day notification period, has not yet launched due to patent litigation questions.

FDA Approves Second Infliximab Biosimilar

On April 21, 2017, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gave its nod to a new biosimilar version of infliximab, and will compete against the originator product Remicade®. Manufactured by Samsung Bioepis, it will be marketed by Merck in the US as Renflexis™.

The new agent, the first approved from Samsung Bioepis, will have to elbow its way to marketshare alongside Pfizer’s Inflectra®, which was launched late in 2016. The nonproprietary name of the new agent is infliximab-abda, in keeping with FDA’s 4-letter suffix policy.

Renflexis was approved for the full slate of indications of the other infliximab agents, including Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and ankylosing spondylitis.

This biosimilar approval was the first by FDA without the formal meeting of its advisory committees. The agency had first indicated that it would not require advisory committee meetings for biosimilar products in September 2016, when an FDA official   stated that “the first biosimilar for each reference product will have an advisory committee, but there will not be hearings for any others ‘unless there’s a specific issue to discuss.’”

This version of infliximab was approved in 2016 by the European Medicines Agency as Flixabi, and this agent is marketed by Biogen. Biogen is a partner with Samsung in Samsung Bioepis.

The manufacturing and licensing partners have indicated that they intend to market Renflexis at the end of its 180-day notification period, in November. However, assuming patient litigation is ongoing, the launch may have to be at-risk, as was Pfizer’s launch of Inflectra, to avoid additional delays in commercialization.

Budgeting the Impact of Inflectra and a Possible Clinical Benefit for Amjevita

Although the biosimilar marketplace is fairly stagnant at the moment, there was plenty of action at this week’s annual meeting of the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy held in Denver, March 27–30.

Calculating the Breakeven Point for a Health System

A poster presentation from the University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy discussed the budget impact of adding biosimilar infliximab (Inflectra®) to the formulary of a model health system.

In this presentation, the researchers assumed the health system had 1,000 patients taking infliximab; of these, 400 were new prescription starts for the biosimilar’s rheumatology and gastroenterological indications, and the rest were receiving maintenance therapy on the originator product Remicade®. The model assumed 3 levels of discounting on Remicade: 10%, 15%, and 20%. They assumed that 60% of patients with a gastrointestinal indication would start on Remicade, and 40% of new start patients would be given Inflectra. At a new start and maintenance price of $20,430 for the biosimilar, they calculate a breakeven point of 15% discount for Remicade to keep only the originator on formulary.

If they assumed that the biosimilar was given not only to new starts but also to 50% of patients initially receiving Remicade , the breakeven discounting point for keeping Remicade only on the formulary becomes far greater. This model is somewhat conservative, because it assumes no further discounting by Pfizer for its biosimilar product. However, it also does not consider additional levels of rebating by Janssen Biotech.

A Biosimilar’s Noneconomic Benefit?

Although biosimilar manufacturers are constrained in the respect that their product has to not only mirror the structure and clinical effect of the originator biologic, it also cannot be produced in a more convenient form of administration (autoinjector vs. vial/syringe). The expectation is that the biosimilar will not be superior in any way to the originator. In a second poster presentation, Amgen researchers disputed this assertion with their biosimilar version of adalimumab. According to their findings, Amjevita® was associated with less injection-site pain compared with Humira®, based on pain scores given by clinical trial patients with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis. They found that pain site scores (based on a 100-mm visual analogue scale) were significantly lower at each 4-week office visit for the biosimilar.

The researchers theorize that the reason for the benefit may be the different excipients used in the biosimilar versus the originator drug.