New forum created to expand access to biosimilars
A coalition of pharmaceutical companies has formed the Biosimilars Forum, a nonprofit seeking to expand patient access to biosimilars in the United States.
A coalition of pharmaceutical companies has formed the Biosimilars Forum, a nonprofit seeking to expand patient access to biosimilars in the United States.
Founding members of the Biosimilars Forum are Actavis, Amgen, Boehringer Ingelheim, Coherus BioSciences, EMD Serono, Hospira, Merck, Pfizer, Samsung, Sandoz, and Teva.
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“The Biosimilars Forum will provide evidence-based information to inform and support public policies that encourage access, awareness, and adoption of biosimilars,” said Michael Werner, a policy advisor for the Biosimilars Forum. “The introduction of biosimilars in the United States can help expand access to high-quality treatment options for clinicians and patients as well as reduce costs to families, caregivers, payers, and the healthcare system.”
Elected officers of the forum are president, Juliana Reed, vice president, global government affairs, Hospira, Inc; vice president, Hillel Cohen, PhD, executive director, scientific affairs, Sandoz Biopharmaceuticals; treasurer, Geoffrey Eich, executive director, external affairs for biosimilars, Amgen; and secretary, Stacie Phan, director, state government affairs and public policy, Boehringer Ingelheim.
Last week, the forum submitted a public statement to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services regarding the need for appropriate coding for biosimilars.
Click here to read that statement.
