Elevance Health's CarelonRx is the latest pharmacy benefit manager to put biosimilars for popular drug Humira on its formulary, the company said this week.
Beginning Dec. 1, adalimumab-adbm will be added to each of its commercial formularies, according to a blog post from CarelonRx. Cyltezo will also be added to certain formularies, and both will be offered at parity with Humira.
Humira has been the bestselling drug in the U.S. for a decade, and PBMs have long awaited biosimilar products to challenge the drug's dominance in the market. Drugs that treat inflammatory conditions, like Humira, represent a growing piece of overall drug spend.
Other key PBMs, including Express Scripts and Optum, have taken similar steps. CVS Health launched a new subsidiary, called Cordavis, earlier this year that aims to work alongside drugmakers to bring additional biosimilars to market, with the first product a Humira biosimilar in collaboration with Sandoz.
Cyltezo and adalimumab-adbm, both of which are made by Boehringer Ingelheim, are the first biosimilars to receive an interchangable designation from the Food and Drug Administration.
"By keeping Humira on our commercial formularies, while adding these biosimilars at parity with Humira, we deliver more choice to our members and providers," according to a post from CarelonRx. "And by continuing to monitor the pipeline, CarelonRx can support biosimilar adoption while driving competition and increasing access to cost-effective new treatments."