Pfizer’s Deal Speeds Push Into $20 Billion Biosimilar Market
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One reason Pfizer Inc. will spend $17 billion to buy Hospira Inc. is to become a market leader in so-called biosimilar medicines, which are cheaper versions of expensive biotechnology drugs.
Pfizer already has five biosimilars in development, according to the drugmaker’s website, including versions of rheumatoid arthritis treatments like AbbVie Inc.’s Humira, which sold $12.5 billion in 2014, and Enbrel, which brought $4.69 billion to Amgen Inc. last year.