A major French hospital group has chosen a cheap copycat version of a top-selling drug for treating its patients with rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease and psoriasis in a victory for a new type of medicine known as biosimilars.    

In a document seen by Reuters, the central purchasing agency for the Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP) said on Friday it had decided to buy the biosimilar version of infliximab from Hospira (HSP.N), after the company offered a discount of some 45 percent to branded Remicade.

AP-HP caters for nearly a quarter of the country's population and the tender decision will allow the copycat to make significant inroads in the French market. 

Hospira, which is being acquired by Pfizer (PFE.N), sells its drug under the brand name Inflectra. The medicine was developed by South Korean firm Celltrion (068270.KQ) as a copy of Remicade, the original branded drug from Merck & Co (MRK.N) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N).

Remicade, which has annual European sales of about 2 billion euros ($2.2 billion), and the biosimilar both contain the same antibody, known as infliximab. The drugs are given by intravenous infusion.

For more details, go to: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/07/03/us-france-biosimilars-idUSKCN0PD1SI20150703