IMS Health has published a new report which provides an assessment of the effects of biosimilar competition on price and volume across Europe
The report, The Impact of Biosimilar Competition, was developed at the request of the European Commission and draws on data from 2014.
The findings of the report will help inform policy development in the UK as the market for off-patent biological medicines according to the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI).
IMS Health’s report found that sustainable competition in the biological medicines market underpins the potential for healthcare savings and increased access.
It also showed that uptake of biosimilar medicines varies widely between countries and across therapeutic areas, driven by national considerations such as the types of products available in each medicine class.
According to the report there is also a weak correlation between biosimilars market share and price erosion of biological medicines but potential for significant savings associated with increased competition, despite biosimilar medicines not being able to offer the same percentage price reductions as generic medicines.
The report confirms that it is important for policies developed in the UK to support competition and a sustainable biological medicines market.
Savings made through successfully establishing a competitive marketplace should be reinvested, according to the report, in order to support greater and earlier patient access to biological medicines, where the UK currently lags behind Europe in several therapeutic areas such as rheumatoid arthritis.
IMS Heath’s report also suggests that the policies developed should take the specific conditions of the biological medicines market into consideration and also ensure that prescribing decisions continue to be made firstly by the responsible clinician in consultation with their patient and secondly on the basis of the overall value proposition offered by an individual medicine.
The Impact of Biosimilar Competition report can be found at the website of the European Commission .