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The Korea Herald
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THE INVESTOR
March 29, 2024

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Korea denies insurance coverage for Pfizer’s Ibrance

  • PUBLISHED :June 09, 2017 - 16:41
  • UPDATED :June 09, 2017 - 16:51
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[THE INVESTOR] The Korean government on June 9 decided not to offer insurance coverage for Pfizer’s new breast cancer drug Ibrance, questioning the pricey drug’s cost-effectiveness.

The state-run cost watchdog Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service said the reimbursement price offered by Pfizer Korea was too high in relation to the drug’s benefits. 

The agency asked the local unit to lower the price or submit more evidence to back its pricing for next review.




Ibrance, hailed as one of the most important advances in breast cancer treatment over the past decades, hit the Korean market in November last year. Its global sales reached US$2.1 billion in 2016.

Without insurance coverage, patients here will have to pay 210,000 won (US$187.40) for one pill of the drug, equivalent to 5 million won per month.

Regardless of the government’s decision, Pfizer Korea said it will start a program from June 12 to offer 30 percent refund of the prescription costs for patients. 

Hormone Positive Breast Cancer Forum Korea, a civic group of 400 cancer patients, has been urging Pfizer to lower the drug price, criticizing the US drug maker's discrimination against Korean consumers. 

In the UK, the company doled out the drug free of charge for almost five months ahead of the local watchdog's decision on insurance coverage that is still ongoing.

By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com)

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