Stelara Formulations, White Bagging Bring Complexity to IRA Negotiated Drug List

As CMS engages in the initial round of Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)-mandated drug price negotiations with manufacturers, one of the agents on the list of Medicare Part D drugs to be negotiated has certain aspects that make it a not-so-straightforward candidate. Stelara (ustekinumab) from the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson has particular qualities that could result in unintended consequences, asserts one industry expert.

Stelara is unique among the first drugs to be negotiated in that it is available in both subcutaneous and intravenous formulations. The human interleukin-12 and -23 antagonist is approved for subcutaneous use for the treatment of people at least 6 years old with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis who are candidates for phototherapy or systemic therapy and people at least 6 with active psoriatic arthritis. It also is approved for the treatment of adults with moderately to severely active Crohn’s disease and adults with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis, for whom treatment is initiated with a single intravenous dose, followed by subcutaneous maintenance dosing.