Boehringer links up with Quallent to expand access to Humira biosimilar

German family-owned pharma major Boehringer Ingelheim has entered into an agreement with Quallent Pharmaceuticals, a private label pharmaceutical distributor, to help expand patient access to citrate-free adalimumab-adbm, Boehringer's biosimilar to AbbVie’s (NYSE:  ABBV) Humira (adalimumab), in the USA.

"Boehringer Ingelheim is dedicated to broadening access to essential biologic medicines, and our collaboration with Quallent will increase availability of our adalimumab biosimilar for patients living with certain chronic inflammatory diseases," said Chris Marsh, senior vice president of value and access at Boehringer Ingelheim. "The utilization of biosimilars such as adalimumab-adbm provides the potential for more patients to benefit from biologic medicines and saves costs for both patients and the US healthcare system overall. We're committed to helping the biosimilar market reach its potential, and this partnership is an important step in enabling greater adoption of these lower-cost options," he noted

Under the terms of the agreement, Boehringer says it will manufacture adalimumab-adbm for Quallent and continue to commercialize Boehringer Ingelheim-labeled Cyltezo (adalimumab-adbm) injection and Adalimumab-adbm.