Expanded reimb for Jardiance…management of CRM disease

Enabling integrated management of cardio-renal-metabolic diseases…expected to imrpve patient access

Confirmed benefits in treating a wide variety of patients regardless of their existing diabetes status

Product photo of Jardiance

Boehringer Ingelheim announced on the 29th that its SGLT2 inhibitor, Jardiance (empagliflozin), will be reimbursed by the National Health Insurance for the treatment of chronic kidney disease (CKD), starting August 1, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare notification.

 

According to this notification, Jardiance will be reimbursed for the treatment of chronic kidney disease patients who meet all of the following conditions: ▲Being stably treated with an ACE (Angiotensin-converting-enzyme) inhibitor or Angiotensin II receptor blocker at the maximum tolerated dose for at least 4 weeks ▲Having an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) between 20-75 ml/min/1.73m2 ▲Having a positive urine dipstick test (1+ or more) or a urine albumin/creatinine ratio (uACR) of 200mg/g or more.

 

With this expanded reimbursement, Jardiance will be reimbursed by the National Health Insurance for all three indications: Type 2 diabetes, chronic heart failure, and chronic kidney disease.

 

The expanded reimbursement is expected to strengthen its position as a crucial therapeutic option in the integrated management strategy encompassing cardio-renal-metabolic (CRM) diseases.

 

The latest reimbursement approval is based on the results of the EMPA-KIDNEY Phase 3 clinical study, a large-scale and broad-patient population SGLT2 inhibitor study in the area of chronic kidney disease treatment.

 

The study involved 6,609 chronic kidney disease patients with various underlying causes and comorbidities across the spectrum of CKD severity, regardless of Type 2 diabetes status or the use of renin-angiotensin system inhibitors.

 

The study results showed that Jardiance significantly reduced the relative risk of kidney disease progression and cardiovascular death by 28% compared to placebo.

 

This effect was consistently observed regardless of the presence of diabetes or albuminuria.

 

Notably, unlike previous SGLT2 inhibitor studies, which primarily focused on patients with high urine albumin/creatinine ratio, the EMPA-KIDNEY study included patients with low urine albumin/creatinine ratio, which is significant.

 

Ju-Young Moon, Professor of Nephrology at Kyung Hee University Hospital at Gangdong (Director of Insurance and Legislation at Korean Society of Nephrology), stated, "While it is crucial to detect and initiate treatment for chronic kidney disease at the earliest possible stage, fundamental treatment options available to patients have long been limited," and added, "With the expanded reimbursement of Jardiance, which can slow the progression to end-stage renal disease, more active and efficient treatment becomes possible, and a positive change is expected across the entire treatment environment." Jiyoung Park, Head of CRM Franchise at Boehringer Ingelheim Korea, stated, "It is significant that Jardiance, which has presented the possibility of an integrated approach to cardio-renal-metabolic diseases beyond blood sugar control, can now offer treatment opportunities to more patients by expanding its reimbursement coverage to chronic kidney disease," and added, "We will continue to do our best to expand treatment benefits for patients and contribute to improving the treatment environment based on various clinical evidence and treatment backgrounds."