STAT+: Vertex offers limited access to a cystic fibrosis drug in South Africa — and may undercut a court case
After months of sustained criticism, Vertex Pharmaceuticals reached an agreement to provide a pricey cystic fibrosis treatment in South Africa, but the move prompted a mixed reaction from consumer groups, some of which complained the deal is geared toward people with expensive health coverage.
Under the arrangement, the company is making its Trikafta medication available through a government mechanism that allows a medicine that is not registered for sale in the country to be made available to individual patients. To accomplish this, Vertex is working with a private sector health plan, according to the South Africa Cystic Fibrosis Association. Specific details were not disclosed.
A Vertex spokeswoman wrote us that “the current access pathway is a major step forward that will benefit many people living with cystic fibrosis.” She added that, given an “historic unwillingness to fund innovative medicines especially in rare diseases” in South Africa, the government mechanism is “the quickest way to secure access.”
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