Canberra. Australia’s peak body for more affordable medicines, says Australia is falling behind other OECD countries, in delivering life-changing affordable biosimilar medicines to patients and their specialists.
The Generic and Biosimilar Medicines Association (GBMA) will leverage next week’s fifth annual Global Biosimilars Week (GBW), running from 11-15 Nov 2024, to underscore the health and economic impact biosimilars delivers to patients and taxpayers alike.
The focus of this year’s GBW, (an initiative of the International Generic and Biosimilar Medicines Association (IGBA), is ‘Advancing Access to Biosimilars’. Although there have been significant strides made in the approval, market acceptance and adoption of biosimilar medicines over the past two decades, the week recognises that patients in many countries continue to lack access to these essential treatments
Independent Chair of GBMA, Professor Jane Halton AO PSM, said that there have been 1000 biosimilars approved globally to date, for the long-term treatment of diseases such as cancers, Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA), Crohn’s disease (CD); and Multiple Sclerosis (MS). “However, in Australia the uptake of biosimilars has not matched other OECD countries,” Professor Halton said. “We know the most vulnerable of Australian patients, particularly those with life-long chronic illnesses, are often struggling to afford their medicines.
A single biosimilar molecule released onto the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) has the potential to unlock up to $100 million in savings back to the Government. These are funds that could be reinvested back into Australians’ healthcare”.
Professor Halton said it was critical that Australia adopted policies to expand access to biosimilars, where appropriate, to support the health and hip pocket of Australian patients”. The highlight of next week’s activities will be a complimentary webinar Streamlining Regulatory Requirements to Advance Access to Biosimilars where experts will discuss the key barriers to biosimilar uptake in different regions and explore strategies to overcoming these obstacles.
The CEO of the GBMA, Ms Marnie Peterson invites all stakeholders to participate in the #GlobalBiosimilarsWeek activities next week. “By supporting biosimilar awareness, education and policies, we can help provide more health benefits to more patients in Australia and around the globe”, said Ms Peterson.
Further information about GBW can be found on the GBMA website.
Media inquiries: Jannette Cotterell Executive Counsel Australia
+61 419 204 059
jcotterell@executivecounsel.com.au
ABOUT IGBA
The International Generic and Biosimilar Medicines Association (IGBA) strengthens cooperation
between associations representing manufacturers of generic and biosimilar medicines from around
the world. Adopting a patient centric approach, IGBA works to improve patients’ access to quality
assured, safe and cost-effective medicines by promoting competition and enabling innovation in
the pharmaceutical sector and sustainable economic contributions for all stakeholders.
ABOUT GBMA
The Generic and Biosimilar Medicines Association (GBMA) is the peak representative body of
generic and biosimilar medicine suppliers in Australia. Its members ensure that all Australians
are offered the highest quality generic and biosimilar medicines in the world whilst providing
affordable community health outcomes that benefit all Australians.
ABOUT BIOSIMILARS2
Biosimilar medicines are highly similar versions of the original, or ‘reference’, brand of a biological
medicine. They are subject to the same regulatory standards and are equally safe and effective at
treating the conditions as the original biological medicine.3
Biosimilar brands of medicine come onto the market after the patent for the equivalent reference
brand of a biological medicine has expired. They provide more brand options for the same clinical
results and introduce competition into the medicines market. They have been available in use for
more than 15 years.
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1860592/
- Australian Government. Department of Health and Aged Care. About Medicines. Available online: https://www.health.gov.au/topics/medicines/about-medicines
(Accessed on 31 January 2023). - Australian Government. Department of Health and Aged Care. Biosimilar Medicines Regulation.
Available online: Biosimilar medicines regulation | Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA)
