Express Scripts To Cover AbbVie's Newly Approved Hepatitis C Drug

(RTTNews) - Pharmacy benefits manager Express Scripts Holding Co. (ESRX) announced Monday it will add drug maker AbbVie Inc.'s (ABBV) newly approved Viekira Pak, a breakthrough treatment for hepatitis C, to the its National Preferred formulary. The multi-year agreement will make available cheaper Hepatitis C cure to millions of patients in need.

"Express Scripts and AbbVie have a single focus: do what's right for hepatitis C patients. For the first time, a pharmaceutical manufacturer and a pharmacy benefit manager have created an agreement to deliver on the promise of a curative therapy for hepatitis C patients," said Steve Miller, senior vice president and chief medical officer of Express Scripts.

AbbVie's Viekira Pak will be the exclusive option for patients with genotype 1 hepatitis C, regardless of symptoms or disease progression, starting January 1, 2015. Express Scripts National Preferred Formulary covers about 25 million Americans, who will now have access to Viekira Pak.

St. Louis, Missouri-based Express Scripts noted that Viekira Pak will be dispensed through the Accredo Specialty Pharmacy, which delivers superior treatment outcomes, better adherence, and cost effectiveness compared to other specialty pharmacies.

The drug was determined to be at least clinically equivalent to Harvoni (ledipasvir and sofosbuvir) and Sovaldi (sofosbuvir) by Express Scripts' independent Pharmacy & Therapeutics Committee. As a result of the committee's determination, Viekira Pak will immediately be added to the Express Scripts formulary.

Meanwhile, Express Scripts noted that it will now exclude Gilead Sciences' (GILD) Sovaldi and Harvoni as well as Johnson & Johnson's (JNJ) Olysio (simeprevir) from the National Preferred Formulary, effective January 1, 2015. However, patients who began treatment before January 1 will continue to receive coverage.

Viekira Pak (ombitasvir, paritaprevir and ritonavir tablets co-packaged with dasabuvir tablets) was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday as a treatment for patients with chronic hepatitis C virus genotype 1 infection, including those with a type of advanced liver disease called cirrhosis.

Viekira Pak is the only FDA-approved regimen that contains three distinct mechanisms of action - NS5A inhibitor, NS3/4A protease inhibitor and a non-nucleoside NS5B polymerase inhibitor - that work together to attack the virus at three separate stages of the disease lifecycle to inhibit it from reproducing.

Viekira Pak is the fourth drug product approved by the FDA in the past year to treat chronic HCV infection. The FDA approved Olysio in November 2013, Sovaldi in December 2013 and Harvoni in October 2014.

"We want all hepatitis C patients to receive the best care our healthcare system can deliver, but that option simply wasn't possible until today. Our formulary approach makes specialty medications more affordable, and Accredo's unique clinical model will enable as many patients as possible to be cured of hepatitis C," Miller added.

ESRX closed Friday's regular trading session at $80.97, up $0.36 on a volume of 9.37 million shares, and ABBV closed at $67.71, up $0.02 on a volume of 12.52 million shares.