FILE PHOTO: A building belonging to Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, the world’s biggest generic drugmaker and Israel’s largest company, is seen in Jerusalem February 8, 2017. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun/File Photo
TEL AVIV/NEW YORK (Reuters) – Teva Pharmaceutical Industries is “content” with having its new migraine drug Ajovy covered by nearly two-thirds of payers in the United States, Chief Executive Kare Schultz told Reuters on Wednesday.
Last month, CVS Health Corp, a top U.S. manager of pharmacy benefits, added Ajovy and a competing drug from Eli Lilly and Co to its list of covered drugs, although it has been excluded from preferred coverage by two other large payers.
Schultz said the current level of coverage was acceptable since the company did not want to discount Ajovy, launched last September, too much.
He also said Teva’s generic version of Mylan NV’s EpiPen should approach a 50 percent market share by the end of next year and that the Israel-based drugmaker has discontinued about 100 products as part of a restructuring.
Schultz said Teva’s R&D spending should remain around 6 percent of revenues going forward.
Reporting by Steven Scheer, Tova Cohen and Michael Erman