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Dec 21 (Reuters) - An independent nonprofit organizationthat evaluates clinical and cost effectiveness of new medicinesfound the price of GlaxoSmithKline's new drug for severeasthma should be as much as 76 percent lower to justify itsvalue, according to the group's latest draft report.
The Boston-based Institute for Clinical and Economic Review(ICER) said its analysis indicated that Glaxo's Nucala should bepriced at $7,800 to about $12,000 a year, far below the drug'slist price of $32,500 a year.
It found that once-monthly injectable Nucala, which won U.S.approval last month, significantly reduces asthma attacks and symptoms and decreases the need for oral steroids. However, it found that the price was not cost-effective, andthat there is uncertainty about whether the benefits willpersist over the long term because of the short duration ofclinical trials.
Glaxo, in an emailed statement, said it supports the work ofICER but disagrees with its conclusion. It said controllingsevere asthma attacks helps reduce direct and indirect costs tothe healthcare system, such as the need for urgent care visitsand hospitalizations.
"We believe that Nucala is fairly priced, balancinginnovation and market value with patient access," Glaxospokeswoman Sarah Spencer said.
In the same report, ICER found Novo Nordisk's long-actinginsulin Tresiba, which will compete with Sanofi's big-selling Lantus, to be reasonably priced. It said the listprice of $7,800 per year was about 8 to 10 percent too high, butthat that was "well within the range of typical discountsavailable to payers."
The report found that Tresiba, which gained U.S. approval inSeptember, provides moderate certainty of equivalent blood sugarcontrol with a reduction in nocturnal hypoglycemia comparable toother long-acting insulins.
ICER President Steven Pearson, in a statement, said itsanalyses aim "to help the health care community determine whatshould be used, which patients benefit most, and at what priceinnovative treatments represent a reasonable value."
ICER said the latest draft report will be open to publiccomment until Jan. 12.
In a previous report, the group found that a potent newclass of injectable cholesterol-lowering drugs, one being soldby Amgen and another by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals in partnership with Sanofi, should cost about a thirdof their list prices to keep costs in line with healthcarebudgets and the benefit they bring. Those drugs, Repatha andPraluent, list for more than $14,000 a year. (Reporting by Bill Berkrot in New York; Editing by MatthewLewis)
