Diabetes Continues To Be One Of The Highest (And Fastest Growing) Drug Spend Categories For Employer Groups

SmithRx is forging new pathways to make insulin more affordable. The SmithRx Low Cost Insulin Program decreases the cost of insulin at the pharmacy for employer groups and members.

All the savings from filling preferred generic and biosimilar insulins through this program are passed along to the employer group. Humalog is a rapid-acting/mealtime insulin and is available in the generic formulation, Insulin lispro. A long-acting insulin, Insulin glargine-yfgn is a biosimilar to and interchangeable with Lantus.

Lilly is the maker of Humalog and offers the generic formulation, insulin lispro. Pharmacists can substitute generic drugs for brand-name drugs. This program lowers the cost of rapid-acting Insulin lispro at the pharmacy by applying a savings card to the lesser of the member’s standard copay or $35 for a month’s supply.

Insulin glargine-yfgn is made by Mylan and is a biosimilar to and interchangeable with Lantus. In most states, the pharmacist can substitute Lantus for Insulin glargine-ygfn without a new prescription. By switching to biosimilar insulin products, this program provides up-front savings and at SmithRx we pass 100% of the savings to employer groups.

What Is A Biosimilar? How Is It Different From A Generic?

Biosimilar is a term used for a drug, like Insulin glargine-yfgn, that has no meaningful clinical differences from an existing biological drug, like Lantus. Biosimilars are reviewed and approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for clinical performance, safety, potency, and purity. Biosimilars are not considered generics by the FDA because they are made differently from the product they are being compared to despite having similar effectiveness and safety. Not all biosimilars are interchangeable and must meet additional testing requirements to show they are the same, clinically, in any given patient for the same indications. Insulin glargine-yfgn is interchangeable with Lantus.

These insulins can be filled at any pharmacy within the SmithRx network. For Insulin lispro, members must ask the pharmacist to run their insulin claim through their SmithRx card and their Lilly Savings Card.

Interested in learning more about how your clients can benefit from SmithRx’s Diabetes Low-Cost Insulin Program or our other Connect 360 programs? Get in touch!