In April 2020, just as the pandemic was starting to take full effect, the
EMA had
approved 58 biosimilars
. It was a growing market, and the pandemic - and the inevitable economics
constraints - actually brought biosimilars front and centre.
Following the 2008 recession, governments turned to biosimilars as a means
of saving. Before long, the narrative around generics offering a lower
efficacy rate was forgotten, and biosimilars were hailed as the answer to
delivering effective healthcare solutions on a tighter budget. Although the
market was in a unique position compared to other industries, it still
faced many hurdles throughout the pandemic. Read on to hear how Covid-19
rocked the biosimilar market.
A challenge for companies focused on biosimilars
Over the years, several companies have started to distance their operations
from the biosimilar market. Just take Merck, who have separated their
biosimilars to be produced under the name of a different company. However,
that does not mean to say there is lower competition. In fact, there are
new companies on the scene, like Coherus Biosciences, which are snapping up
newly available market share and establishing themselves as biosimilar-only
businesses.
2020 marked the end of many blockbuster biologics patents in the US, such
as Truvada, Chantix, Forteo, Ciprodex, and Afinitor. It was set to be a big
year for the market, but for those focused on biosimilars, there were some
obstacles to face.
Stagnation in the approval of non-Covid therapeutics
Before the outbreak of coronavirus, GlobalData found that
24% of survey respondents
believed that ‘patent expiry of biologics’ was a top trend expected to have
a positive impact on
the pharmaceutical market
. This was the most popular response, above M&A mega-deals and the
vertical integration of the healthcare system. However, 2020 was the
slowest year for approvals in the US market since 2016, with the
FDA approving only three biosimilars
. Many industry leaders have pointed out that this delay in the approval
process has caused businesses to push back their launch dates, thereby
flattening market growth.
Delays for products in the pipeline
When drugs lose patent protection, this creates new opportunities for
biosimilar companies. A patent will typically last around 20 years from the
moment a company files an application. This period gives exclusive rights
to the drug inventor, after which competing companies can launch a
biosimilar. Though the market was on track for a good year, the pandemic
threatened to derail product pipelines. During the height of the outbreak,
resources were diverted away from the research and development of new
biosimilars and towards
the fight against Covid-19
.
Logistical problems
In our report –
The impact of biosimilar competition in Europe
– we found that in 2020, biosimilar medicines reached a value of €8.4
billion, representing 9% of the total biologics market. But as the virus
spread and operations were turned on their head, it soon became clear there
would be a disruption to the supply chain. Raw materials could no longer
reach their intended destination, and this brought the production of
biosimilars to a grinding halt in some cases. But with a
Covid-19 vaccine
developed and deployed in record-breaking time, the market can breathe a
sigh of relief knowing that these operations are steadily returning to
normal.
Find your next job with IQVIA
It’s been a challenging year for biosimilar companies and the wider
pharmaceutical industry, but there’s never been a better time to search for
your next job. At IQVIA, we help our clients bring their biosimilar to
market faster by tapping into unparalleled data, technology, advanced
analytics, and scientific expertise. If you want to be a part of our
mission, browse our
e-detailing representative jobs
and find out where you can take your biosimilar career with IQVIA. Or,
browse
all jobs
to see what other job opportunities we can offer you.
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