In October, Amgen cut the price of a biweekly dose of its cholesterol drug Repatha by 60 percent. Now, the drugmaker has announced another 60 percent price slash, this time to the cost of a monthly dose, according to a news release obtained by Becker's.
Three things to know:
1. All Repatha device options, including its prefilled syringe or a monthly on-body infusor, are now available at a reduced list price of $5,850 per year. Last October, only the price of the pre-filled syringe was cut.
2. About 80 percent of Repatha Medicare patients now have access to this reduced list price through their plans.
3. "The lower list price announced in October has been received very positively by patients, physicians and payers, and we are already seeing a noticeable impact for patients," said Murdo Gordon, executive vice president of Global Commercial Operations at Amgen "However, more must be done to help more patients get to a low fixed copay. We need continued engagement from all stakeholders — from healthcare professionals to payers to plans and to government agencies — to help ensure patients benefit from the lower list price to reduce their out-of-pocket costs."