Medunik USA, member of Duchesnay Pharmaceutical Group (DPG) one of the few anchor companies selected by the Government of Canada for its Global Hypergrowth Project, is pleased to announce the expansion of its UNIK Support Program specialty pharmacy network to now include both Accredo Health Group and CVS Specialty. UNIK Support offers specialized services to benefit patients including a copay savings program, patient care liaison services, mail order pharmacy and other support services.
In addition, Arkansas has recently added Pheburane® to its Medicaid Preferred Drug List. As a result, 48 State Medicaid programs now cover Pheburane®, including 12 State Medicaid programs that have included Pheburane® as a preferred covered agent for the treatment of certain UCD patients. Additionally, ~80% of commercially insured Americans have access to Pheburane® coverage, of which more than 75% is preferred coverage.
Pheburane® is an innovative adjunctive therapy consisting of very small coated oral pellets (about the size of sugar crystals) for the chronic management of adult and pediatric patients with UCDs involving deficiencies of carbamylphosphate synthetase (CPS), ornithine transcarbamylase (OTC) or argininosuccinate synthetase (AS). Pheburane® is not indicated for the treatment of acute hyperammonemia. The most common side effects associated with sodium phenylbutyrate are menstrual dysfunction, decreased appetite, body odor and bad taste or taste aversion.1
Available in Europe since 2013 and in Canada since 2015, Pheburane® has a proven history in the treatment of UCDs at an international level. Medunik USA launched Pheburane® in the USA in September 2022 and since then has significantly widened access to this important treatment option through strategic alliances and cost-effective pricing policies. The widespread preferred coverage for Pheburane® reflects its value proposition and potential to reduce costs within the healthcare ecosystem by 50-70% relative to other taste-masked/nearly tasteless UCD medications*.
"The expanded Pheburane® coverage and affordable pricing underscore our commitment to providing Americans with rare diseases access to effective, fairly priced medicines, thus contributing to improving the lives of those whose needs are too often neglected," said Claude-André Boivin, Director, Strategic Pricing and Business Insights, Duchesnay Pharmaceutical Group.
UCDs are rare, chronic, genetic conditions that can be fatal if left untreated, and can impact children from the time of birth. UCDs disrupt the body's urea cycle, and therefore, the body is unable to remove the dangerous buildup of toxic chemicals, particularly ammonia, that are created from the digestion of protein. One in 35,000 people in the United States or about 28 per one million residents suffer from UCDs of different levels of severity.
About urea cycle disorders (UCDs):
The main purpose of the Urea Cycle is to eliminate toxic ammonia from the blood and make urea, which is then excreted as urine. UCDs are rare genetic disorders that cause errors in this process, allowing high levels of ammonia, the key marker for UCDs, to build up in the bloodstream, potentially to dangerous and fatal levels. Ammonia is extremely toxic, particularly to the central nervous system. UCDs can cause catastrophic illness in newborns within 36 to 48 hours of birth despite the infants appearing normal, so they can be discharged from hospital before signs of UCDs develop. UCDs require lifelong monitoring and treatment.
About Pheburane®:
Pheburane® is a taste-masked oral formulation of sodium phenylbutyrate, approved by the Food and Drug Administration as adjunctive therapy to standard of care, which includes dietary management, for the chronic management of adult and pediatric patients with UCDs, involving deficiencies of carbamylphosphate synthetase (CPS), ornithine transcarbamylase (OTC) or argininosuccinic acid synthetase (AS). Pheburane® is not indicated for the treatment of acute hyperammonemia.
For more information, visit www.medunikusa.com.
