Vertex strikes deal with NHS England for access to all licensed cystic fibrosis medicines
October 24, 2019Vertex got a deal with NHS England, to enable eligible patients with cystic fibrosis in England the access to Orkambi and Symkevi, and expanded access to Kalydeco.
LONDON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (Nasdaq: VRTX) today announced an access agreement with NHS England for all currently licensed Vertex cystic fibrosis (CF) medicines and any future indications of these medicines.
This means that within 30 days patients with CF in England ages 2 years and older who have two copies of the F508del mutation in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene can be prescribed ORKAMBI® (lumacaftor/ivacaftor) by their doctor and CF patients ages 12 years and older who either have two copies of the F508del mutation or one copy of the F508del mutation and a copy of one of the other 14 licensed mutations can be prescribed SYMKEVI® (tezacaftor/ivacaftor) in combination with ivacaftor.
The agreement also offers expanded access to KALYDECO® (ivacaftor) to include people ages 18 years and older who have the R117H mutation and those patients ages 12 months and older who have one of the nine licensed gating mutations.
“Today is a significant day for the cystic fibrosis community in England. This important agreement, reached in collaboration and partnership with NHS England and NICE, will allow more than 5,000 eligible cystic fibrosis patients in England to have access to CFTR modulators to treat the underlying cause of their disease,” said Ludovic Fenaux, Senior Vice President, Vertex International.
In addition to England, reimbursement agreements have also recently been announced in Scotland, Australia and Spain.
About CF in the UK
Over 10,000 people in the UK have CF − the second highest number in the world. Over 8,000 people in England have CF. CF is a debilitating, life-shortening inherited condition that causes progressive damage to organs across the body from birth. Currently, there is no cure for CF and half of people in the UK with CF die before they are 32. The daily impact of treatment is significant. It can take up to four or more hours involving, nebulizers, physiotherapy and up to 70 tablets a day. CF accounts for 9,500 hospital admissions and over 100,000 hospital bed days a year. A third of these are used by children under 15.