As domestic pharma players race to launch the generic version of Novartis’ blockbuster heart failure drug after its patent expiry, Mankind Pharma reduced the price of its drug, NEPTAZ, by 70 percent in India.
The patent of Novartis’ heart failure Vymada which is a combination of Sacubitril and Valsartan expired on January 16 this year. Last year, Mankind launched NEPTAZ in a collaborative agreement with Novartis.
India’s Rs 20,000-crore cardiac drug market is in for a shake-up as major domestic pharma companies have already started launching their generics.
Glenmark, just a day after the patent expiry, announced the launch of their own brand of Sacubitril-valsartan tablets Sacu V, priced between Rs 19-35 per tablet.
Sources told Financial Express.com that NEPTAZ is manufactured using US FDA-approved DMF-grade Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) and the price reduction of up to 70 percent is done across different SKUs for its brand.
The product belongs to a class of medicines called Angiotensin Receptor Neprilysin Inhibitors (ARNI) which is approved by Regulatory authorities across the globe including the US and Europe.
Studies show that heart failure claims more than 17.9 million lives every year globally whilst, medicines for critically ill heart patients are usually expensive.
Earlier in December, JB Pharma, which had acquired the Azmarda brand from Novartis AG, Switzerland for the India region for a consideration of Rs 246 crores in April 2022, had slashed its prices by half to Rs 39.6 per tablet.
Industry experts told Financial Express.com that the patent loss of Vymada or Entresto is set to cause major disruptions in India’s cardiology sector. In India, Sun pharma has the largest share in the country’s cardiac market, followed by Torrent Pharma, Lupin and USV.