Vizient announces that Steven Lucio, PharmD, BCPS, associate vice president, pharmacy services, will present on behalf of the company and its member hospitals at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) public hearing “Facilitating Price Competition and Innovation in the Biological Products Marketplace,” being held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. today.
The Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act of 2009 (BPCIA) created an abbreviated licensure pathway for biological products shown to be biosimilar to, or interchangeable with, an FDA-licensed biological reference product. The BPCIA was intended to balance innovation and consumer interests.
“Vizient fully endorses the scientific principles of biosimilarity and its pathway as critical mechanisms to mitigate the accelerating growth of pharmaceutical expenditures through the development and marketing of follow-on biologics of comparable safety, purity, and potency,” said Lucio. “Based upon our experiences, and more importantly that of the diverse membership of health care providers, we have accumulated a wealth of insight and we are excited to have this opportunity to address the questions presented by FDA.”
Since 2010, Vizient has provided ongoing training and education on the biosimilar paradigm to its membership in the form of over 200 in-person presentations and web conferences, has developed evidence based clinical resources to support members in their formulary evaluations of approved and pending biosimilars, and has worked with existing and future biosimilar manufacturers on contractual relationships to maximize the value and cost savings opportunities for our membership. At present, Vizient has over 50 pharmacist and other subject matter expert resources working to facilitate the appropriate use of biosimilars and document the financial value and sustained high quality care associated with these agents.
Vizient is the nation’s largest health care performance improvement company serving a diverse membership that includes academic medical centers, pediatric facilities, community hospitals, integrated health care delivery networks and non-acute health care providers.
To watch the hearing on a live stream webcast, go to: https://collaboration.fda.gov/biosimilarspart15
About Vizient, Inc.
Vizient, Inc., the largest member-driven health care performance improvement company in the country, provides innovative data-driven solutions, expertise and collaborative opportunities that lead to improved patient outcomes and lower costs. Vizient’s diverse membership base includes academic medical centers, pediatric facilities, community hospitals, integrated health delivery networks and non-acute health care providers and represents approximately $100 billion in annual purchasing volume. The Vizient brand identity represents the integration of VHA Inc., University HealthSystem Consortium and Novation, which combined in 2015, as well as MedAssets’ Spend and Clinical Resource Management (SCM) segment, including Sg2, which was acquired in 2016. In 2018, Vizient again received a World’s Most Ethical Company designation from the Ethisphere Institute. Vizient’s headquarters are in Irving, Texas, with locations in Chicago and other cities across the United States. Please visit www.vizientinc.com as well as our newsroom, blog, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube pages for more information about the company.
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Source: Vizient, Inc.
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