Celltrion Healthcare said Monday that it has presented the financial savings of European health insurance following the introduction of biosimilars at the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) Europe 2018.

Kim Ho-woong, head of strategic operations at Celltrion Healthcare, made public his presentation on “Roles of Biosimilars on Patient Access to Biologic Treatments,” using examples of financial savings from the U.K.’s National Health Service and an analysis report of economic impacts of biosimilar prescription by IQVIA, a drug market research agency.

“The financial savings in Europe from biosimilar prescriptions are eventually leading to the medical benefits of more patients,” Kim said. “In fact, according to data released by the NHS in July, Britain reduced its healthcare finances by about 470 billion won ($416.4 million) annually by converting high-priced drugs in 2017 and 2018 into cost-competitive alternatives such as biosimilars.”

In particular, the use of the company’s infliximab and rituximab biosimilars accounted for 47 percent of the total reduction, thus contributing significantly to the decrease in health insurance in the U.K., he added.

According to the IQVIA study, Europe can save about 730 billion won through the prescription of rituximab biosimilars, which in turn, can help 48,000 new patients that need the same drug.

Kim stressed that using biosimilars as a first-line treatment would have a significant effect on reducing health insurance finances.

The company also noted a study conducted by Professor Gulácsi of the Department of Health Economics at Corvinus University in Hungary, which found that early treatment of patients with rheumatoid arthritis with a TNF-α inhibitor instead of a synthetic chemical drug resulted in long-term therapeutic efficacy and cost-effectiveness.

“If the TNF-α inhibitor is recommended as a first-line treatment for patients with rheumatoid arthritis, the biosimilars market will expand significantly and will have a positive impact on the Remsima and Truxima markets in the long term,” the company said.

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