French Market Survives On New Generics

Source : 'Generics Bulletin'

Despite the turmoil of the COVID-19 pandemic, France’s generics market maintained its trajectory in 2020, according to the latest data published by local industry association Gemme.

For the reimbursable generics market, “2020 is broadly in line with 2019,” Gemme said. “The market is only growing thanks to new molecules and the development of substitution,” the association pointed out, referring to a slight increase of 2.6% in the substitution rate for eligible generics.

Based on a constant “perimeter” – a set group of available generics listed in France’s répertoire of generic equivalents that does not include newly-launched products from 2020 – volumes declined by 1.8% compared to the 0.1% fall on the same basis seen in 2019. () “This drop would have been even more severe if pharmacists had not confirmed their investment in the development of generics by intensifying substitution,” Gemme commented.

However, when new launches were taken into account, the market saw overall volume growth of 1.1%, compared to the 1.3% seen in 2019. “There is now no doubt that it is the arrival of new molecules that has driven the generic drug market in 2020,” Gemme observed, “as has been the case for many years.”

Moreover, Gemme noted, generics still accounted for just two-fifths of the reimbursable pharmaceutical market in the community pharmacy setting, despite 75% of products used during the COVID-19 pandemic being generics.

“Our warnings over the importance of preserving the long-term supply of mature medicines have taken on their full meaning in the context of this crisis,” insisted Gemme president Stéphane Joly.

Citing savings generated by using generics that reached €2.85bn ($3.39bn) in 2020, Gemme said this added to a cumulative total of more than €32bn since 2000. “However, it would be possible to do even better if France used generics to the same degree as our comparator [countries],” Joly pointed out.

Meanwhile, on biosimilars Gemme insisted that “lower volume growth, both in hospitals and community pharmacy, shows the need to change regulations and to put in place incentives to accelerate the development of the market.”

Insisting on the “strong potential” of biosimilars, Gemme nevertheless acknowledged that the market was still emerging and had in 2020 shown the extent to which its success was dependent on the regulatory environment.

Growth in the hospital setting was 18% in 2020 compared to 48% in 2019, Gemme noted, while in the community pharmacy setting growth was brought to a virtual standstill of just under 9% growth, compared to the explosion seen in the previous year where biosimilars had grown by 123%.

“With penetration of 69% in hospitals and only 23% in the community pharmacy setting, this market is still far from the target of 80% use of biosimilars in 2022 set out by the national health strategy,” Gemme observed. ()

Urging France’s healthcare system to not “miss out on the development of biosimilars” – which Gemme said would represent “a terrible lost opportunity for French patients” – the association said it was essential to introduce biosimilar uptake incentives for all stakeholders.

Noting that it was preparing to soon release results of a study by French market researcher Crédoc on levers for biosimilar development, Gemme also pointed to a recent consultation initiated by the French health ministry to take a fresh look at the circumstances under which biosimilar substitution should be permitted.

These discussions should “bring all actors together to build a specific framework allowing the use of biosimilar drugs by all, putting patients first,” Gemme said, with Joly insisting that “there is no more time to lose. Biosimilars must be allowed to play their full part.”

Describing 2020 as “a difficult year that has reminded us of our vulnerability, and has highlighted a number of organizational flaws but also our strengths, which were revealed through the unprecedented mobilization of all stakeholders,” Gemme president Joly said “these flaws are all opportunities to improve ourselves individually and collectively, to continue to ensure the delivery of the right medicine to the right patient at the right place and at the right time, in conditions of optimal safety and efficacy.”

But for that to be possible, he insisted “it is imperative that the lessons learned from the COVID crisis are translated into forthcoming administrative and legislative measures.”

“It is imperative to protect the generics sector,” Joly maintained, which had been hit by “repetitive price reductions” as well as “the absence of political ambition to relaunch the market, in particular by increasing prescription within the répertoire.”

“2021 offers us a challenge,” Joly concluded, “to continue our individual and collective efforts to overcome the crisis and to support the evolution of our sector. Gemme and its members are determined and will remain mobilized to respond to the issues on the table, and to work with all of our partners – administrators, healthcare professionals, manufacturers, logistics, patients – to imagine and put in place more agile methods to support this evolution and ensure the sustainability of our healthcare system.”

By David Wallace