AbbVie Scores Canadian Reimbursement Recommendations For Blockbuster Ulcerative Colitis Drug Skyrizi

On Friday, AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) announced two updates for ulcerative colitis patients in Canada.

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Ulcerative colitis is a chronic, immune-mediated inflammatory bowel disease affecting the large intestine, causing persistent inflammation and ulceration of the colon’s lining. Common symptoms include frequent diarrhea, abdominal pain, and rectal bleeding.

Skyrizi (risankizumab), an IL-23 inhibitor, received two consecutive positive reimbursement recommendations by Canada’s Drug Agency for inflammatory bowel diseases, initially for Crohn’s disease and now for ulcerative colitis, supported by evidence from pivotal phase 3 clinical trials including MOTIVATE, ADVANCE, FORTIFY (for Crohn’s disease), and INSPIRE, COMMAND (for ulcerative colitis).

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Canada’s Drug Agency has recommended Skyrizi (risankizumab) to be reimbursed with conditions by public drug plans for adults with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis who have had an inadequate response, loss of response, or were intolerant to conventional therapy, a biologic treatment, or a Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor if certain conditions are met.

The recommendation was informed by feedback from 25 Canadian clinicians and two patient organizations.

AbbVie has also completed negotiations with the pan-Canadian Pharmaceutical Alliance (pCPA) regarding SKYRIZI for ulcerative colitis, and a Letter of Intent (LOI) has been signed by both parties.

In the third quarter of 2025, Skyrizi sales increased 46.8% year over year to $4.71 billion.

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ABBV Price Action: AbbVie shares were down 0.35% at $226.87 at the time of publication on Friday, according to Benzinga Pro data.

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