AstraZeneca hops on the DTC sales train in the US
AstraZeneca is the latest big pharma group to open up a Direct-To-Consumer (DTC) sales channel in the US, offering three of its drugs at a big discount to cash buyers.
The new online platform – AstraZeneca Direct – will go live later this week and provide access to diabetes, heart failure, and kidney disease drug Farxiga (dapagliflozin), asthma therapy Airsupra (albuterol and budesonide), and nasal spray influenza vaccine FluMist.
AZ is offering up to 70% off the list prices for the two medicines, with Farxiga available at less than $190 for a 30-day supply and Airsupra costing around $250. FluMist has been available for a few weeks as a home delivery option after getting an FDA green light for self-administration, but until now only for those with health insurance coverage.
"We remain deeply committed to improving accessibility, affordability, and driving innovation in healthcare, and we are excited to launch AstraZeneca Direct, which will give patients a transparent cash price with the convenience of home delivery," said AZ's US president, Joris Silon.
"The programme complements our existing patient support services and is an important step forward in offering patients the medication they need, when and how they need it."
Direct selling of medicines to patients – sometimes referred to as 'pharm-to-table' – is one of the biggest commercial trends in the US pharma sector, with AZ following a string of other companies down this route, including Bristol Myers Squibb, Pfizer, Novo Nordisk, and Eli Lilly.
The companies have said that the move should help lower drug prices by cutting out middlemen like pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), which negotiate volume discounts and fees with pharma companies on behalf of employers and health plans, create formularies of drugs covered by insurance, and reimburse pharmacies for prescriptions. The pharma industry has long argued that this complex supply chain results in inflated drug prices.
Critics see problems, such as the potential for pharmas to influence prescriber behaviour, implications on data privacy and patient trust, and – given that even the discounted medicines are still likely to be too expensive for many people – may contribute to inequitable access to some medicines in the US.
President Donald Trump issued an executive order earlier this year encouraging DTC sales as part of a broader strategy on drug pricing, and has tied that closely with his most-favoured-nation (MFN) pricing policy, which aims to cut drug prices in the US so they match the lowest prices in other developed countries. He has called for "direct-to-consumer purchasing programmes for pharmaceutical manufacturers that sell their products to American patients at the [MFN] price."
Plans US listing
It has also emerged that AZ plans to seek a direct listing of its shares on the New York Stock Exchange, shifting from its current presence via American depositary receipts, but the company has confirmed it will retain its UK and Swedish listings.
That will be a relief to the UK government and wider life sciences sector, which have been rocked in recent weeks by a series of setbacks, including abandoned investment projects, in protest at steep rebates on medicine sales to the NHS.
