With high prices of drugs becoming an object of regulatory actions by the Trump administration, one company has taken steps to lower the prices of a biologic for which it won approval a few years ago.
Amgen said Wednesday that it would reduce the list price of Repatha (evolocumab) by 60 percent, to $5,850 per year, adding that the new price reflects the administration’s goal of lowering drug prices. Lowering the list price, the company said, will improve affordability by lowering patient copays, especially for Medicare patients. Repatha, a PCSK9 inhibitor, was approved in 2015 and is used to reduce the risk of cardiovascular events and cholesterol in patients with cardiovascular disease, primary hyperlipidemia and homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia. The drug had US sales of $225 million and $94 million in other markets in 2017, according to Amgen’s annual report.
When Investment Rhymes with Canada
Canada has a proud history of achievement in the areas of science and technology, and the field of biomanufacturing and life sciences is no exception.
Still, despite saying the decision was in line with the Trump administration’s goals, in a conference call with reporters to announce it Wednesday, the company downplayed the influence of the administration, saying its consideration and the desire to widen Repatha’s availability predated recent actions by the Department of Health and Human Services. Indeed, the move to lower the price of a PCSK9 inhibitor is not unprecedented. In addition to Amgen’s latest move on Repatha, Sanofi and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals also reduced the price of their PCSK9 inhibitor, Praluent (alirocumab), in March, for high-risk patients.
In keeping with an administration blueprint for reducing drug prices, HHS has proposed requiring direct-to-consumer advertisements from drugmakers whose prescription drugs are covered under Medicare and Medicaid to include list prices if their monthly costs exceed $35. However, the industry and some experts have questioned the proposal, which was published in the Federal Register last week, saying it overlooks the complexity around drug pricing and risks sowing confusion and harming medication adherence.
Meanwhile, some equity researchers see Amgen’s move as potentially expanding the market for PCSK9 inhibitors. In a note to investors Thursday, analysts from B. Riley FBR wrote that lowering Repatha’s list price could help improve volume uptake by reducing the rate of prescription abandonment, which they cited Amgen executives’ guidance as occurring at a rate of 75 percent. It could have a positive read-across to The Medicines Co.’s PCSK9-targeting RNA interference drug inclisiran, for which it has a partnership with Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, by expanding the PCSK9 inhibitor market overall. Topline Phase III data for inclisiran are expected in the second half of next year.
Photo: gerenme, Getty Images
