CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) has announced that it will remove AbbVie’s (NYSE:ABBV) blockbuster drug Humira from its major national commercial formularies on April 1 and instead provide coverage for biosimilars of the product.
The healthcare conglomerate stated that while Humira will no longer be included in its Choice and Standard Opt Out commercial formularies, it will still be covered in its rest.
CVS further added that AbbVie has agreed to supply a “committed” volume of Humira co-branded with CVS’ new Cordavis biosimilar unit.
It is noteworthy that CVS launched Cordavis last August for the explicit purpose of collaborating with drug manufacturers to commercialize and co-develop biosimilars for the US market. At its inception, CVS had indicated that Cordavis’ first product would be a biosimilar version of Humira developed by Sandoz.