Merck's Remicade discounting put squeeze on biosims—and broke U.K. law, officials say

Fierce Pharma ------ Under biosimilar assault in Europe, Merck rolled out cut-rate deals on Remicade to defend its brand from cheaper options, then-brand-new to the market. Now, the U.K.’s competition authority claims the pharma giant “broke competition law” by lowering the med's price. In a statement of objections issued on Tuesday, the U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) says Merck abused a “dominant position through a discount scheme for Remicade that was likely to restrict competition from ‘biosimilar’ versions of infliximab that were new to the market.” Merck is known as MSD outside of the U.S. Discount deals are among the tactics Big Pharma is using to counter competition from biosimilar rivals—and increasingly so, as more of the knockoff drugs launch. Johnson & Johnson, now facing a Remicade biosimilar in the U.S., has said its own aggressive deals with payers will help the brand preserve sales. That sort of attempt is possible with biosimilars, as opposed to ultracheap small-molecule generics, because the more complex knockoffs tend to be priced around 15% lower than the brand, within the realm of payer dealmaking. To learn more click on the picture below to read the article.