Biologic drugs are effective treatments for patients with RA, but their high costs take up a large part of British Columbia’s (BC) health care budget. As many biologic drugs are coming to the end of their patent, it is possible to make equivalent drugs called biosimilars for a much lesser cost. That would result in a cost saving of millions of dollars to the health care budget. The money saved could be spent on treating other patients. But, it is difficult to make biosimilar drugs exactly the same as the biologic drugs even though their safety and effectiveness are similar.

In 2019, a new policy in BC switches patients using biologic drugs to biosimilar ones. Other places including Alberta and Ontario are planning to introduce similar policies and are watching the outcomes of the one in BC. Our findings will provide valuable information to people with RA using biosimilars and biologics, and to health care professionals and health care policy makers who are seeking to deliver the best possible health care to their populations.