Diabetes Drug Market: Generics of MSD diabetes pill set to flood market as patent expires

The oral anti-diabetes drug market is in for a major shake-up as Merck, Sharp & Dohme’s (MSD‘s) Januvia is expected to go off patent this month.

According to market research firm AIOCD, at least 50 Indian drug makers are jumping into the fray with around 100 generic versions of the popular anti-diabetes medication, leading to a likely price war.

Analysts expect prices to drop by 60% with the entry of generics, and intensify competition for vildagliptin and teneligliptin, two molecules of the same class that went off-patent in 2019 and 2015, respectively.

Januvia – which goes by the generic name sitagliptin – comes under the class of dipeptidyl peptidase (DPP4) inhibitors.

MSD also sells a fixed dose combination of sitagliptin and metformin under the brand name Janumet.

also markets sitagliptin and a sitagliptin-metformin combination in India under licence from MSD.

The current market for sitagliptin and its combinations are around ₹1,000 crore, which is 10% of India’s oral anti-diabetes drug market.

At present, a 100mg tablet of Januvia costs around ₹45 MRP, while the 50mg one costs ₹37.80. Janumet 50/500 mg and 50/1000 mg costs ₹27, and Janumet extended-release costs ₹41.