Biosimilars: Infliximab Update

The rising cost of healthcare nationwide is a very serious issue. One of the proven ways for the health system to address the rising costs is to use biosimilars. Biosimilars are FDA-approved drugs that are highly similar to the reference product. This means that they have no clinically meaningful differences from a reference product and are expected to deliver the same outcome as the brand-name product. Switching to a biosimilar significantly reduces health costs across the health system. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas (BCBSKS) has been implementing preferred biosimilar products since 2021 and include biosimilars for filgrastim, infliximab, pegfilgrastim, rituximab and trastuzumab.

BCBSKS has utilized preferred products for infliximab since January 1, 2022, however the preferred products will be changing to Avsola and Inflectra on April 1, 2023. Providers who use a preferred product will NOT need to pursue a prior authorization to use the preferred product. Providers who choose to use a non-preferred product will need to obtain a prior authorization to use the non-preferred product.

​​​​​If you have any questions regarding this latest news article, please contact your BCBSKS provider representative.

Professional Providers