UnitedHealth trims drug coverage, including Sanofi insulin
UnitedHealth Group Inc, the largest U.S. health insurer, will stop covering several brand-name drugs as of next year, reinforcing a trend of payers steering prescriptions to lower-priced options.
The insurer said Basaglar, a cheaper biosimilar insulin sold by Eli Lilly & Co would be covered as “Tier 1,” meaning the lowest out-of-pocket costs for members. Levemir, produced by Novo Nordisk A/S, will move from Tier 1 to Tier 2.
Biosimilars are cheaper copies of protein-based biotech drugs such as Lantus, which are no longer protected by patents. They cannot be precisely replicated like conventional chemical drugs but have been shown to be equivalent in terms of efficacy and side effects.
The insurer also said it will exclude from coverage Amgen Inc’s white blood cell-boosting drug Neupogen, in favor of Zarxio, a biosimilar sold by Novartis AG.
UnitedHealth last year bought Catamaran Corp for $12.8 billion, making it the nation’s No. 3 pharmacy benefit manager after Express Scripts Holding Co and Caremark, which is owned by CVS Health Corp.
Filed under: General Problems
Bio-SIMILAR is not the same! Even with something like Tylenol III there is a huge difference between name brand and generic. I guess proper medications aren’t important anymore. My daughter takes Lantus and gets better sugar control than when she takes any other insulin product. Sadly without any insurance or income she usually has to use an OTC insulin and ends up with readings of 300 to 800!
UNITED,, health care insurance refuse to insure me,,,before Obama care,,,which tells me their about as ethical,,humane,,,and actually care about the sick as the devil himself,,,,their in it for the money only,,,mary