Express Scripts will cover PCSK9 inhibitors Praluent and Repatha in 2016

US pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts (Nasdaq: ESRX) has announced it will cover both Repatha (evolocumab) from Amgen (Nasdaq: AMGN) and Praluent (alirocumab) from Regeneron (Nasdaq: REGN), two PCSK9 inhibitors.

Praluent was approved with a price of $14,600 per patient per year, and Repatha for $14,100 in July and August, respectively, while Express Scripts plans to spend approximately $750 million on both products in 2016, below industry forecasts. The company said this came from "a combination of discounts and a rigorous utilization management program.” The decision by Express Scripts comes a month after a review from the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review stated that Repatha and Praluent were too expensive and the price best representing overall benefits would be somewhere around a 67% discount to their list prices.

Steve Miller, chief medical officer at Express Scripts, said: "we were able over the course of tough negotiations to get good economics on both products... since these new medications were approved a few months ago, our pharmacy experts have worked with medical professionals and our plan sponsors to ensure these drugs are used specifically by patients who will benefit the most."