Express Scripts Excludes Valeant, Eli Lilly Drugs from New Formulary List

Express Scripts posted its new formulary list on Monday, which is a run-down of the drugs it plans to cover under its insurance plan for the following year.

The pharmacy benefits manager decided to exclude 85 drugs from this list for 2017. That figure is slightly smaller than the 87 that were left off it in 2016.

Some of the notable omissions from this list include Valeant Pharmaceutical’s actinic keratosis cream Zyclara, Bristol-Myers Squibb’s arthritis treatment Orencia, as well as Eli Lilly’s psoriasis therapy Taltz, reported Reuters. A spokesperson for Express Scripts, David Whitrap, told the publication the expensive hepatitis C drugs Epclusa and Harvoni will remain on the excluded list, but their status could change by the end of the year.

Also, two arthritis drugs made by Pfizer along with another set of asthma treatments developed by GlaxoSmithKline will be added to Express Script’s list for 2017. They will be considered “preferred alternatives” after price negotiations were conducted between the pharmacy benefits manager and the companies, according to Reuters.

The idea behind removing certain drugs from this list could give Express Scripts more bargaining power when it comes to drug pricing and save money for individual insurers and corporate customers. This program may help participants save an estimated $1.8 billion next year, according to Express Scripts.