Cigna Is Latest Payer to Nudge Patients Toward Private-Label Stelara Biosimilar
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May 22, 2025
When deciding how to cover Stelara (ustekinumab) and its recent spate of follow-on products, prominent PBMs and payers are favoring Biocon Biologics Ltd.’s Yesintek and their own private-label biosimilars — including one that has been the target of litigation.
Cigna Healthcare, a division of The Cigna Group, on May 15 issued a new drug-coverage policy that prefers branded Stelara, Yesintek, Alvotech/Teva’s Selarsdi and ustekinumab-ttwe, a biosimilar manufactured by Cigna subsidiary Quallent Pharmaceuticals.
As nonpreferred products, Cigna’s new policy lists Formycon/Fresenius’ Otulfi, Celltrion’s Steqeyma and Sandoz/Samsung’s Pyzchiva. Regarding Pyzchiva, the policy notes that patients will instead be “directed to ustekinumab-ttwe,” Quallent’s unbranded version of the drug.
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