CVS Health Inc. (NYSE:CVS) on Thursday said it is taking additional steps to lower prescription drug costs by expanding access to biosimilar medications, announcing new formulary changes that will take effect in 2026.
Beginning April 1, 2026, CVS Caremark will add osteoporosis biosimilars Ospomyv and Stoboclo, along with generic teriparatide products Bonsity and Tymlos, to major national commercial template formularies.
These medications will replace the branded drugs Amgen Inc.’s (NASDAQ:AMGN) Prolia (denosumab) and Eli Lilly and Co.’s (NYSE:LLY) Forteo (teriparatide), which CVS Health said will result in costs that are more than 50% lower per prescription compared with the original brands.
CVS Caremark said the newly added biosimilars Ospomyv, from Cordavis Limited, and Stoboclo, from Celltrion Inc., are FDA-approved to treat osteoporosis in high-risk patients and to increase bone density in certain cancer patients, expanding access to effective and lower-cost care.
A drug formulary is a regularly updated list of preferred medications selected using evidence-based medicine and the judgment of physicians, pharmacists, and other experts.
The company compared the strategy to the use of generics as alternatives to branded drugs, noting that biosimilars offer safe and effective options with no clinically meaningful differences from their reference products.
CVS Caremark said the latest changes build on prior formulary decisions, including the exclusion of reference brand AbbVie Inc.’s (NASDAQ:ABBV) Humira in favor of lower-cost biosimilars.
Ed DeVaney, President of CVS Caremark, said the company was the first pharmacy benefit manager to remove Humira from its commercial template formulary in favor of less expensive biosimilars.
DeVaney said that the strategy has helped customers and their members generate $1.5 billion in gross savings and demonstrated the value of using formulary tools to drive competition. CVS Caremark said 96% of its client members using Humira successfully transitioned to a biosimilar.
Prolia and its biosimilar alternatives are specialty drugs dispensed by CVS Specialty. When formulary changes occur, CVS Specialty contacts both prescribers and patients to explain the update and guide them through the transition.
Price Action: CVS stock is up 1.57% at $77.53 at the last check on Friday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
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