Zeroing out Biosimilars

After years of debate and intense lobbying, the end game for the creation of a biosimilars pathway in the United States is approaching as Congress prepares to include provisions in healthcare reform legislation that are intended to foster competition with pioneer innovator biologic drugs.

A Federal Trade Commission (FTC) report released last week, and the responses to it from members of Congress and industry, demonstrate that the prolonged debate has not diminished the controversy over the best ways to balance incentives for biomedical innovation with the economic benefits to patients and payers that could be produced by a robust biosimilars market...