On 12 August 2024, Celltrion announced that its high concentration, buffer free (100mg/ml) adalimumab, biosimilar to AbbVie’s Humira®, is now on the Costco member prescription program. The Celltrion buffer free product was FDA approved on 23 May 2023 and was launched in the US on 2 July 2023. The product was first available in Costco Speciality Pharmacy on 1 October for self-funded employer plans, and is now available for all Costco members through the membership prescription program. Celltrion had previously announced the “exclusive” supply of its Yuflyma® through Care Partners, which is apparently at odds with the Costco deal.
This follows the news on 18 July 2024 that GoodRx listed Boehringer Ingelheim’s low and high concentration adalimumab products for supply at a 92% discount from Humira, which in turn followed a similar deal between Alvotech and Cigna subsidiary Quallent Pharmaceuticals in April 2024.
Earlier this year, Celltrion applied to the FDA seeking interchangeable status for Yuflyma®. Celltrion has previously said that it “tentatively expects” interchangeability designation to be granted in Q4 2024. Alvotech and Teva’s Simlandi® received FDA approval on 23 February 2024 as the first high-concentration, citrate-free biosimilar to Humira® to be granted interchangeable status by the FDA.