In a statement released yesterday, the National MS Society expressed disappointment with the wholesale acquisition cost (WAC) of Vumerity (diroximel fumarate), approved by FDA on October 30 for relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS).
The Society considers the $88K WAC excessive, citing that the price is only $500 lower that the least expensive oral disease-modifying treatment and “does not show the commitment to affordable access that we had hoped.”
The compound was initially developed by Alkermes (ALKS +1.3%) and exclusively licensed to Biogen (BIIB -2.7%) in November 2017.
Biogen, like almost all other biotechs, has a track record of consistent price hikes for its medicines. For example, Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate), was approved in the U.S. for relapsing forms of MS in March 2013 at a WAC of $54,750 which has increased over $40K to today’s WAC of $94,991, a compounded increase of almost 10% annually.
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