Industry: Novartis to relieve hundreds of thousands of migraine sufferers in Switzerland – Economy



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The distribution of Aimovig may begin in Switzerland. Swissmedic, the Swiss drug control authority, has granted approval for this preventive treatment of migraine. Episodic or chronic. The American firm Amgen Inc. and the Basel glove Novartis AG joined forces in August 2015 to design this crucial remedy.

A tenth of humanity is affected by migraine. And that's 11% of the Swiss population, according to Novartis. In 2016, the World Health Organization presented migraine as the third most common disease in the world, and the seventh leading cause of disability

Prices

Important reminder. This headache often goes for an ordinary headache. Wrongly! "Migraine is a neurological disease, a complex brain problem," says Elizabeth Leroux, a Canadian headache specialist.
In May, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has already granted approval for Aimovig and its active ingredient (erenumab). Those of the European Union should imitate them before the end of the year. Patients administer this medication once a month, using an injection pen, the famous "SureClick", similar to an insulin pen used by people with diabetes. The treatment is per monthly dose of 70 or 140 milligrams.

Good salesman, the general manager of Novartis Pharmaceuticals, Paul Hudson, immediately knew how to find the appropriate terms to present the Aimoving at Uncle Sam: "This is the first and only treatment approved by the FDA to be specifically developed to prevent migraine."

The Great Trump

This truth and the nature of the American market stimulated, until the last moment, the forecasts and other speculations on the selling price of the Aimovig. The auction has gone up to $ 10,000 a year. Rates are now known: 575 dollars (almost as much in francs) for the monthly dose of 70 or 140 milligrams and 6900 dollars for one year of treatment.
The official prices for Switzerland are not yet fixed. It is also not certain that the tariffs practiced in this country are close to those announced on the other side of the Atlantic. "As long as the price is not decided by the Federal Office of Public Health, it may vary depending on the doctor or pharmacist. The American price of the Aimoving reflects in any case the value that this drug brings to patients and society, "says the management of Novartis AG.

This last element appears as the great badet of the Novartis antimigraine cure. The annual costs of absenteeism in companies are between 21 and 32 billion francs in Europe and 20 billion in the United States.
Stefan Schneider, a financial badyst at Bank Vontobel AG, believes that Amgen and Novartis have taken a significant advantage over their competitors (Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Eli Lilly & Co and Alder Biopharmaceuticals Inc.) by arriving faster than they in the market. the fight against migraine. Zurich Cantonal Bank considers the Aimoving as a new growth vehicle, offsetting the loss of the patent on Gilenya, a drug for primary progressive multiple sclerosis. (TDG)

Created: 16.07.2018, 19:55

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