Aggregated News
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said on Wednesday it had entered into agreements with Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX.O), opens new tab and bluebird bio (BLUE.O), opens new tab to help increase patient access to their gene therapies.
The so-called "outcomes-based agreements" will tie payments to whether the therapy improves health outcomes for patients who receive these drugs and are enrolled in government-backed Medicaid insurance plans.
WHY IT'S IMPORTANT
The two one-time treatments, called Lyfgenia and Casgevy, were approved in the U.S. last year to treat an inherited blood disorder known as sickle cell disease.
Uptake of these gene therapies has been slow, with early use seen mainly in patients with severe disease.
KEY QUOTES
"Due to the high costs, these therapies can pose challenges to state budgets. This (CMS) model will afford state Medicaid agencies more budget predictability while helping improve access to these innovative therapies," said Liz Fowler, CMS deputy administrator.
The Vertex-CRISPR therapy has a U.S. list price of $2.2 million, while bluebird's is $3.1 million.
BY THE NUMBERS
Reuters reported in September that the treatments...
