Sandoz, the generics branch of Switzerland-based Novartis, currently sells three biosimilars. The company pledges to sell eight by 2020, thanks to the upcoming expiration of patents on original drugs.
Richard Francis, the division head of Sandoz, said the company’s generic versions of AbbVie’s Humira, Amgen’s Enbrel and Neulasta, Johnson & Johnson’s Remicade, and Roche’s Rituxan could appear in pharmacies within the next four years. In 2015, these five brand name drugs earned a combined $44 billion in annual sales.
Mr. Francis believes biosimilars will be critical for insurers, healthcare systems and governments aiming to cut costs.
Novartis CEO Joe Jimenez predicts the company’s biosimilars will cost 75 percent less than the brand name drugs they mimic.
Sandoz declined to give a specific launch schedule of their new biosimilars, saying the timeline depends on approvals from the Food and Drug Administration.
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