FDA Extends Indication of Gemtuzumab Ozogamicin to CD33-Positive AML Pediatric Patients

On June 16, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) extended the indication of gemtuzumab ozogamicin (Mylotarg™, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals LLC) for newly-diagnosed CD33-positive acute myeloid leukemia (AML) to include pediatric patients 1 month and older.

Read FDA announcement.

Posted 6/16/2020

FDA Approves HPV Vaccine Gardasil 9 for Prevention of Certain Head & Neck Cancers

On June 12, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved an expanded indication for Gardasil 9 for the prevention of oropharyngeal and other head and neck cancers caused by HPV Types 16, 18, 31, 33, 45, 52, and 58. The oropharyngeal and head and neck cancer indication is approved under accelerated approval based on effectiveness in preventing HPV-related anogenital disease.

Read the corporate press release.

Posted 6/15/2020

CMS Issues Product-Specific J-code for Adakveo®

Novartis is pleased to announce that for dates of service on or after July 1, 2020, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a product-specific J-code: J0791 for injection, crizanlizumab-tmca, 5 mg. The updated billing unit is 5 mg.

The new and unique J-code replaces all previous HCPCS codes for crizanlizumab-tmca (Adakveo^®, Novartis) for IV Infusion 10 mg/mL. The permanent J-code is used by all payer types.

Please note: For dates of service before July 1, 2020, use either J3490 (unclassified drugs, all sites of care) or J3590 (unclassified biologics, all sites of care). For dates of service between April 1, 2020, and June 30, 2020, some payers may allow the use of C9053 (injection, crizanlizumab-tmca, 1 mg, hospital outpatient).

See full prescribing information.

Posted 6/12/20

FDA Approves Nivolumab for Previously Treated Advanced Esophageal SCC

On June 10, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved nivolumab (Opdivo) for patients with unresectable advanced, recurrent or metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) after prior fluoropyrimidine- and platinum-based chemotherapy.

Read the FDA announcement.

Posted 6/11/2020

FDA Approves Nivolumab+Ipilimumab Combo as 1st Line Treatment for Metastatic NSCLC

On May 26, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the combination of nivolumab (Opdivo, Bristol Myers Squibb Co.) plus ipilimumab (Yervoy, Bristol Myers Squibb Co.) and 2 cycles of platinum-doublet chemotherapy as first-line treatment for patients with metastatic or recurrent non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), with no epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) or anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) genomic tumor aberrations.

Read full FDA announcement.

Posted May 27, 2020

FDA Approves Pomalidomide for Patients with AIDS-Related KS

On May 14, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved pomalidomide (Pomalyst^®, Bristol Myers Squibb) capsules for the treatment of adult patients with AIDS-related Kaposi sarcoma (KS) after failure of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) or in patients with KS who are HIV-negative. This indication is approved under accelerated approval based on overall response rate. 

Read corporate announcement.


Posted 5/26/2020

FDA Approves Olaparib + Bevacizumab as Maintenance Treatment for Advanced Ovarian Cancer

On May 8, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved olaparib (Lynparza) in combination with bevacizumab for the maintenance treatment of adult patients with advanced epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube or primary peritoneal cancer who are in complete or partial response to 1st-line platinum-based chemotherapy and whose cancer is associated with homologous recombination deficiency (HRD) positive status defined by either a deleterious or suspected deleterious BRCA mutation, and/or genomic instability. Patients will be selected for therapy based on an FDA-approved companion diagnostic test.

Read the corporate press release.

Read the Lynparza PAOLA-1 Testing Medical Policy Considerations.

Posted 5/21/2020

FDA Approves Olaparib for HRR Gene-Mutated mCRPC

On May 19, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved olaparib (Lynparza) for adult patients with deleterious or suspected deleterious germline or somatic homologous recombination repair (HRR) gene-mutated metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), who have progressed following prior treatment with enzalutamide or abiraterone.

On the same day, the FDA also approved FoundationOne CDx (Foundation Medicine, Inc.) for selection of patients with mCRPC carrying HRR gene alterations and BRACAnalysis CDx test (Myriad Genetic Laboratories, Inc.) for selection of patients with mCRPC carrying germline BRCA1/2 alterations as companion diagnostic devices for treatment with olaparib.  

Read full FDA announcement.

Posted 5/20/2020

FDA Approves Atezolizumab for 1st-Line Treatment in Some Advanced NSCLC

On May 18, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved atezolizumab (Tecentriq^®) for the first-line treatment of adult patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose tumors have high PD-L1 expression (PD-L1 stained ≥ 50% of tumor cells [TC ≥ 50%] or PD-L1 stained tumor-infiltrating immune cells [IC] covering ≥ 10% of the tumor area [IC ≥ 10%]), with no EGFR or ALK genomic tumor aberrations.

On the same day, the FDA also approved the VENTANA PD-L1 (SP142) Assay (Ventana Medical Systems, Inc.) as a companion diagnostic device for selecting patients with NSCLC for treatment with atezolizumab.

Read the full FDA announcement. 

Posted 5/19/2020

Merck's Response to COVID-19

During this unprecedented time, Merck is committed to ensuring its medicines and vaccines reach its patients and customers. This includes supporting patients who might need more help today with their medications, including those who are unemployed or have lost insurance coverage due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

To learn about what support options may be available, visit Merck's Access and Patient Assistance information page.

For more details about Merck’s response to the coronavirus, visit its COVID-19 information page.

Posted 5/13/2020