Voluntary price reduction of Diacomit/Olpadine up to↓40%

Prices of tariff exemption drugs 'Enhertu' and 'Aduhelm' also decreased

The drug prices of Diacomit, a treatment for Dravet syndrome, and Olpadine, a treatment for hereditary tyrosinemia, which is a rare essential drug, fell by up to 40%.

 

The KOEDC said in a press release on the 1st, “In the case of Diacomit and Olpadine, insurance prices were voluntarily reduced on April 1 and May 1, respectively.” As a result, the price of Diacomit per capsule was reduced by about 23% from 19,160 won to 14,700 won.

 

This is due to the fact that overseas wholesalers can reduce transportation costs by importing directly from the manufacturer, and as export certification by the manufacturer becomes possible, tariff exemption is possible under the Korea-EU FTA.

 

Olpadine cut the price by about 40% from 37,386 won per capsule to 22,420 won to adjust for the difference between the cost of import and insurance drug price.

 

As a drug subject to tariff exemption, the insurance price of Enhertu, a breast cancer treatment, was cut from 5.4 million won to 5 million won, and the Alzheimer's drug, Aduhelm, was cut from 3.44 million won to 3.2 million won.

 

The Korea Customs Service imposes a basic tariff rate of 8% when importing medicines from abroad, but no duty is imposed on immune products.

 

The KOEDC took note of this and reduced drug prices through tariff reductions on Enhertu, a breast cancer treatment, and Aduhelm, an Alzheimer's treatment.

 

Enhertu applied for a preliminary review to the Korea Customs Service in June 2022 and was notified of the result in August 2022, and the drug price per vial was reduced from 5.4 million won to 5 million won through tariff reduction.

 

Aduhelm applied for a preliminary review to the Korea Customs Service on March 7, 2023, and was notified of the result on March 20, 2023.

 

Through tariff reduction, the drug price per vial increased from 2.04 million won to 1.9 million won for 170 mg, and 3.44 million won for 300 mg was reduced to 320 million won.

 

In the case of Quinidine, a rare arrhythmia treatment, an attempt was made to import and supply it as an Epic Pharma drug due to Sandoz’s suspension of supply in June 2022, but the cost of the drug was 75 times higher than the existing drug price (50,000 won/bottle), adding to the patient’s burden.

 

The KODC announced that it has been able to supply Nisco Quinidine, which can be imported directly from the manufacturer, by lowering the price to 35,000 won through continuous efforts.