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Big Molecule Watch
July 22, 2016

Pennsylvania Enacts Biosimilar Substitution Law

On July 20, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf signed into law Senate Bill 514, which allows pharmacists to substitute for a brand name biological product a less expensive biosimilar product that has been deemed interchangeable by the FDA. Pennsylvania is the twenty third state to enact such a law.

In particular, under the Pennsylvania law, a pharmacist may substitute a biosimilar for a prescribed biologic product only if (1) the biosimilar has been determined by the FDA to be interchangeable with the prescribed product, (2) the prescriber does not designate verbally or in writing on the prescription for that product that substitution is prohibited, and (3) the person presenting the prescription receives notification of such substitution.  A pharmacist must also communicate the substitution to the prescribing physician, unless it is a refill prescription of the same previously dispensed interchangeable biosimilar.  The new law is similar to biosimilar substitution laws enacted in many other states, which we have previously reported (for example, here, here and here).

Stay tuned to Big Molecule Watch for further coverage of state biosimilar substitution laws.