The Future of Biosimilars: Q&A with Matt Erick

Matt Erick
Chief commercial officer
of advanced markets
Biocon Biologics

The biosimilars market may be off to a slow start, but experts expect 2024 to be a big moment for the market. Matt Erick, chief commercial officer of advanced markets at Biocon Biologics, discusses the current state of the market and how it may change in the coming months.

Pharmaceutical Executive: What are the headwinds and tailwinds for the biosimilars market in 2024?
Matt Erick: It’s no surprise that biosimilar uptake in the U.S. has been slower than expected. Manufacturers today are navigating complex regulatory frameworks, patent litigation, formulary restrictions, reimbursement challenges and physician hesitancy–all of which have contributed to prolonged time to market, increased costs, and slower uptake. However, at the same time, we are seeing an increased demand for cost-effective alternatives and increased efforts to educate on the safety, efficacy, and value proposition of biosimilars as a wider portfolio of medicines starts to enter the market. Policy changes underway aimed at promoting and incentivizing biosimilar adoption are also expected to play a significant role in expanding access.

Investing in the biosimilars market is a marathon, not a sprint. As we head into the next contracting cycle in July, I anticipate doors will start to open for payers, manufacturers, and prescribers for increased migration to biosimilars in general and adalimumab specifically. Biosimilar manufacturers are becoming smarter about insurance contracting cycles and will increase access to new plans and patient populations as a result.

Biocon Biologics is responding to these market dynamics. Biosimilars are not just what we do–they’re all we do. Our global scale and lab-to-market capabilities in development, manufacturing, and commercialization underscores our long-term commitment to this space and to bringing patients timely and equitable access to biosimilars across the world.

PE: What are the therapeutic areas that have the most opportunity for growth?
Erick: There are several therapeutic areas that stand out as having significant potential for growth, driven by looming patent expirations, growing demand for affordable treatments and increased disease prevalence. The major areas we are focused on as an organization are immunology, oncology, and diabetes, including monoclonal antibodies for cancer and autoimmune diseases, insulin and insulin analogs for diabetes and conjugated recombinant proteins for cancer. We have a global portfolio of 20 biosimilar molecules either approved or in development and eight biosimilars commercialized in markets across the globe in these key therapeutic areas, as well as in ophthalmology and bone health.

Another area with significant growth potential is orphan drugs. There are $33 billion worth of annual revenue for orphan biologics that have expired or are expiring in the next ten years, yet no biosimilars for these products have surfaced or are in late-stage development.

PE: What role do global manufacturers and biosimilars players have in providing solutions for supply chain issues in the US?
Erick: We have four biosimilars in the U.S. and are positioned as a fully integrated “lab to market” global biosimilars player. We are focused on reducing complexity and advancing biosimilars throughout the entire value chain from innovation to ensuring a robust global supply. By establishing multiple supply chains and manufacturing sites across different geographies, manufacturers can remain nimble and help mitigate the risk of disruptions caused by factors like geopolitical tensions, natural disasters and drug shortages.

PE: How can companies get the most out of biosimilars and use them to decrease costs?
Erick: To harness the potential of biosimilars to promote more equitable competition, decrease costs and improve access for patients, we must implement a biosimilars-first approach that incentivizes healthcare providers and payers to take advantage of the potential cost savings of biosimilars at launch. A critical element of this is educating providers, patients and payers so they view biosimilars as a viable way to introduce competition to the market. Companies should make sure they are realizing the full value of discounts that biosimilars provide to the health insurance value chain.