Insurance, physician barriers impede wider adoption of biosimilars

An article recently published on the Health Affairs blog by Alice J. Chen, PhD, associate professor at the University of Southern California (USC) Price School of Public Policy in Los Angeles, and colleagues points to insurance formularies as one explanation for slower uptake of biosimilars in the US. Having more than one biosimilar for a biologic may actually complicate matters for pharmacies, Chen and colleagues noted, because it can introduce coverage differences between insurers that issue formularies for which biosimilars they will reimburse. This is a change from how insurers handle reimbursement of a generic version of a small-molecule brand drug, Chen and colleagues said.