UPTAKE OF BIOSIMILARS TO INSULIN GLARGINE IN 2021-2025 IN THE UNITED STATES
Author(s)
Ting-ying jane HUANG, PhD1, Jingjing Qian, PhD2.
1Director, Research Consulting, Komodo Health, New York, NY, USA, 2Auburn University, Auburn, AL, USA.
1Director, Research Consulting, Komodo Health, New York, NY, USA, 2Auburn University, Auburn, AL, USA.
OBJECTIVES: Insulin glargine (Lantus®) is a long-acting, once-daily man-made insulin used to control high blood sugar in adults and children with diabetes. Insulin glargine-yfgn (Semglee®) is the first interchangeable biosimilar to Lantus® approved by the U.S. FDA in July 2021. A second biosimilar, insulin glargine-aglr Rezvoglar®), was approved in December 2021 and designated interchangeable status in November 2022. The real-word evaluations for the uptake of Semglee® and Rezvoglar® in nationally representative populations are limited. This exploratory study evaluated the uptake of insulin glargine biosimilars among the insured populations since their approval.
METHODS: Using the monthly aggregated, product-level (using brand and generic drug names, and National Drug Code (NDC) codes) utilization data of Lantus®, Semglee®, and Rezvoglar® in July 2021 - October 2025 from the Komodo Research Dataset, total number of claims and patients for both biologic and biosimilar products were identified and extracted. Monthly proportions of number of claims and patients of individual insulin glargine products were calculated. Descriptive data analyses were performed using Microsoft Excel 2016 and Gemini Pro (November 2025).
RESULTS: After 4 years of entering the U.S. market, the monthly proportion of Semglee® claims increased from 0% in July 2021 to 13.6% in October 2025. Similarly, the monthly proportion of patients who filled Semglee® prescriptions increased from 0% in July 2021 to 13.7% in October 2025. In October 2025, the monthly proportion of claims and patients of Rezvoglar® was only 0.8%. Lantus® still dominates the insulin glargine market to date after its biosimilar approval.
CONCLUSIONS: Mild uptake of insulin glargine biosimilars in the insured populations was observed within the first 4 years of marketing in the U.S. Further exploration of factors to access such as provider and patient education, policy implementation, and reimbursement reform is warranted to foster stronger biosimilar adoption.
METHODS: Using the monthly aggregated, product-level (using brand and generic drug names, and National Drug Code (NDC) codes) utilization data of Lantus®, Semglee®, and Rezvoglar® in July 2021 - October 2025 from the Komodo Research Dataset, total number of claims and patients for both biologic and biosimilar products were identified and extracted. Monthly proportions of number of claims and patients of individual insulin glargine products were calculated. Descriptive data analyses were performed using Microsoft Excel 2016 and Gemini Pro (November 2025).
RESULTS: After 4 years of entering the U.S. market, the monthly proportion of Semglee® claims increased from 0% in July 2021 to 13.6% in October 2025. Similarly, the monthly proportion of patients who filled Semglee® prescriptions increased from 0% in July 2021 to 13.7% in October 2025. In October 2025, the monthly proportion of claims and patients of Rezvoglar® was only 0.8%. Lantus® still dominates the insulin glargine market to date after its biosimilar approval.
CONCLUSIONS: Mild uptake of insulin glargine biosimilars in the insured populations was observed within the first 4 years of marketing in the U.S. Further exploration of factors to access such as provider and patient education, policy implementation, and reimbursement reform is warranted to foster stronger biosimilar adoption.
Conference/Value in Health Info
2026-05, ISPOR 2026, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Value in Health, Volume 29, Issue S6
Code
HSD55
Topic
Health Service Delivery & Process of Care
Disease
SDC: Diabetes/Endocrine/Metabolic Disorders (including obesity)