Johnson & Johnson, Other Pharma Makers Anticipate Reformulated Injectable Drugs May Exclude Price Negotiations

Cancer drug manufacturers, including Johnson & Johnson JNJ, anticipate that injectable versions of some popular treatments will not be included in U.S. government price negotiations for several years, thereby safeguarding substantial revenue. 

These companies contend that modifying the formula of intravenous medications to allow for injectable use qualifies them as new drugs, delaying their price negotiation eligibility.

Johnson & Johnson, Merck & Co Inc MRK (testing an injectable form of Keytruda), and Halozyme Therapeutics Inc HALO (licensing hyaluronidase, the essential ingredient for subcutaneous medications) all claim that the drugs' reformulation treats them as new, Reuters reported.

Bristol Myers Squibb & Co BMY and Roche Holdings AG RHHBY, developing under-the-skin injections of cancer immunotherapies Opdivo and Tecentriq, stated that it's premature to comment.

The recently enacted Inflation Reduction Act allows the government's Medicare program to negotiate drug prices for the first time, aiming to achieve $25 billion in annual savings by 2031. 

Medicare plans to select ten drugs for the first round of price negotiation to take effect in 2026. The selected drugs will have been on the market for at least nine years without considerable direct competition.

Johnson & Johnson CFO, Joseph Wolk, anticipates that their subcutaneous Darzalex variant, Darzalex Faspro, will not be eligible for negotiation until 2033 or 2034. Merck plans to launch its Keytruda injectable within a few years.