Govt biosim spend jumps 13.5%

New analysis shows the federal government spent just over $197 million on biosimilars in the 2023-24 financial year, a 13.5 per cent year-on-year increase.

Pharma in Focus compared biosimilar data from the 2022-23 FY and the 2023-24 FY PBS Expenditure and Prescriptions reports, which rank biosimilar brands by highest cost to government and excludes the Efficient Funding of Chemotherapy program.

Despite seeing a slight drop in prescriptions, Samsung Bioepis' Brenzys - the only PBS listed biosimilar of Pfizer's Enbrel - retained its position as the costliest biosimilar to government, earning $40.1 million in the 2023-24 FY. It cost the government $41.8 million in the previous FY.