Amgen will offer its lipid-lowering drug Repatha directly to patients for $239 per month, representing a nearly 60% reduction from the current wholesale acquisition cost of $527.70.
Amgen is joining its Big Pharma peers in what is turning out to be an industry-wide push for direct-to-consumer marketing, offering its lipid-lowering therapy Repatha at a steep discount on a new platform.
In a Monday announcement, the pharma revealed a new DTC program called AmgenNow. Reptha will be made available for $239 per month, almost 60% cheaper than its current list price in the U.S. As of Jan. 5, 2025, a monthly course of Repatha without insurance cost $527.70.
Effective Monday, AmgenNow opened its doors to “all” patients on Repatha—even those who are part of government programs like Medicare and Medicaid, the company said.
Of note, Amgen claimed that this new DTC price for Repatha is the lowest among the G7 countries, a bloc composed of economically developed nations. This discount is “being offered exclusively for the first time to U.S. patients,” the company said.
Repatha is given once per month or once every two weeks via autoinjection to reduce cholesterol, especially in people at risk of cardiovascular disease.
“The AmgenNow program will make it easier for uninsured patients or those who choose to pay out-of-pocket to access” Repatha, Murdo Gordon, Amgen’s executive vice president of global commercial operations, said in a statement. The DTC program, the pharma added, is also in-line with the Trump administration’s push to make medicines more affordable for Americans.
Since assuming office in January, President Donald Trump has announced a series of proposals aiming to bring down drug costs. Among these is the Most Favored Nation rule, announced in May, that seeks to match U.S. prices to those of similarly developed countries. The FDA has also rolled out a Commissioner’s National Priority Voucher program seeking to shorten drug review periods from 10–12 months down to 1–2 months. In July, that program’s pilot noted that it would consider companies that were willing to lower their product prices as qualifying for the program.
Like Amgen, many other Big Pharma companies have in recent months offered DTC programs to cut out middlemen and lower the prices of their drugs.
For instance, Novo Nordisk launched such an effort in March to offer Wegovy through NovoCare for $499 per month, as compared with its list price of $1,349.02. In July, Bristol Myers Squibb and Pfizer put their blockbuster blood thinner Eliquis on a DTC scheme, offering a 40% discount.
Pfizer took things one step further last month when it unveiled an agreement with the Trump administration to offer a selection of its products at an average discount of 50% on TrumpRx, an as yet unreleased website.
Amgen said that AmgenNow will also be made available via TrumpRx, but did not provide details or a timeline.
