Jan 13 (Reuters) - The chief executive of health insurer Aetna Inc on Tuesday said that the company had not yet decided which hepatitis C drugs to cover now that there are two breakthrough treatments on the market, but said that the company was actively working on a decision.
Investors are watching closely to see how insurers decide to cover these drugs, which cost tens of thousands of dollars per treatment, after AbbVie Inc started a competitor to Gilead Sciences' breakthrough hepatitis C treatment.
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Tuesday, January 13, 2015
Don’t look for pricey hepatitis drugs to come down
More competitors in the market doesn’t equate to lower prices
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — If you’re looking for drug makers to start discounting those pricey, $1,000-a-pill remedies for hepatitis C soon, prepare to be disappointed.
Biopharmaceutical companies like Gilead Sciences Inc. aren’t showing any signs of easing up on the drug prices that have incurred the wrath of insurers and others in the health-care arena, who claim the makers of hepatitis C remedies are gouging the public. It also doesn’t appear that more competitors expected to come to market with their own hepatitis C medications are overly concerned they’ll have trouble selling the drugs.
From what the drug makers are saying, cutting the price is not their highest priority.
Read more...
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — If you’re looking for drug makers to start discounting those pricey, $1,000-a-pill remedies for hepatitis C soon, prepare to be disappointed.
Biopharmaceutical companies like Gilead Sciences Inc. aren’t showing any signs of easing up on the drug prices that have incurred the wrath of insurers and others in the health-care arena, who claim the makers of hepatitis C remedies are gouging the public. It also doesn’t appear that more competitors expected to come to market with their own hepatitis C medications are overly concerned they’ll have trouble selling the drugs.
From what the drug makers are saying, cutting the price is not their highest priority.
Read more...
Six-week Oral Drug Trial Produces High Hepatitis C Cure Rates
A recent clinical trial, published in The Lancet, involving a 6-week course of a combination of 3 direct-acting oral drugs was found to cure 38 of 40 individuals with hepatitis C virus infection (HCV).
The researchers had found that a 6-week course of therapy is actually half the length of time typically reported to achieve a similar, successful cure rate using only2 direct-acting oral HCV drugs.
For the clinical trial, the first group of 20 volunteers were administered a 6-week course of the newly licensed drug sofosbuvir (Sovaldi) coupled with 2 additional direct-acting oral therapies, ledipasvir and GS-9669 – an experimental drug. The second volunteer group also comprised of 20 individuals had received another 6-week course of sofosbuvir, ledipasvir, and a different experimental drug, GS-9451
. - See more at: http://www.hcplive.com/articles/Six-week-Oral-Drug-Trial-Produces-High-Hepatitis-C-Cure-Rates#sthash.eftwAdC7.dpuf
The researchers had found that a 6-week course of therapy is actually half the length of time typically reported to achieve a similar, successful cure rate using only2 direct-acting oral HCV drugs.
For the clinical trial, the first group of 20 volunteers were administered a 6-week course of the newly licensed drug sofosbuvir (Sovaldi) coupled with 2 additional direct-acting oral therapies, ledipasvir and GS-9669 – an experimental drug. The second volunteer group also comprised of 20 individuals had received another 6-week course of sofosbuvir, ledipasvir, and a different experimental drug, GS-9451
. - See more at: http://www.hcplive.com/articles/Six-week-Oral-Drug-Trial-Produces-High-Hepatitis-C-Cure-Rates#sthash.eftwAdC7.dpuf
Alisporivir program rights returned to Debiopharm
Debiopharm Group has regained all rights to Alisporivir, a cyclophilin inhibitor being investigated for the treatment of hepatitis C virus infection, as a result of a new agreement between the pharmaceutical company and Novartis, according to a news release from the company.
Alisporivir (DEB025, Debiopharm) is currently undergoing two phase 2 clinical trials of therapy without interferon for HCV, and has already been tested in over 2,000 patients, according to the release.
The release stated that Debiopharm and Novartis entered into a partnership for the development of alisporivir in January 2010, which allowed for the current transfer of ongoing alisporivir phase 2 clinical trials to Debiopharm. The new agreement also transfers all rights for HCV and other indications for the drug.
Read more...
Alisporivir (DEB025, Debiopharm) is currently undergoing two phase 2 clinical trials of therapy without interferon for HCV, and has already been tested in over 2,000 patients, according to the release.
The release stated that Debiopharm and Novartis entered into a partnership for the development of alisporivir in January 2010, which allowed for the current transfer of ongoing alisporivir phase 2 clinical trials to Debiopharm. The new agreement also transfers all rights for HCV and other indications for the drug.
Read more...
Brown's Budget Includes Funding for Costly Hepatitis C Treatment
Gov. Jerry Brown's (D) proposed fiscal year 2015-2016 budget allocates about $300 million for high-cost drugs, including expensive medication to treat hepatitis C, Capital Public Radio's "KXJZ News" reports (Bartolone, "KXJZ News," Capital Public Radio, 1/12).
Last week, Brown released his $113.3 billion FY 2015-2016 budget proposal.
According to the budget, Medi-Cal will account for two-thirds of overall health and human services spending in the coming fiscal year. Medi-Cal is California's Medicaid program.
Rena Fox, a physician at UC-San Francisco, applauded the budget proposal for including money to help make hepatitis C treatments available to patients. Fox said, "The cost of the drugs is now making them unattainable for the majority of patients" ("KXJZ News," Capital Public Radio, 1/12).
Monday, January 12, 2015
Are hep C exclusivity deals taking power from doctors?
Exclusivity deals for hepatitis C drugs by pharmacy benefit managers and a major health plan have raised concerns that the decision of which drug is best for a patient is being taken away from clinicians.
While thankful that the companies are ensuring access to treatment, some patient advocates find the trend unsettling.
Alan Franciscus, executive director of the Hepatitis C Support Project, called the agreements “a scary precedent.” “The insurance companies and dispensing companies like CVS and Express Scripts are deciding what drugs hepatitis C patients are being prescribed instead of physicians making medical decisions based on solid science,” Franciscus said.
Read more....
While thankful that the companies are ensuring access to treatment, some patient advocates find the trend unsettling.
Alan Franciscus, executive director of the Hepatitis C Support Project, called the agreements “a scary precedent.” “The insurance companies and dispensing companies like CVS and Express Scripts are deciding what drugs hepatitis C patients are being prescribed instead of physicians making medical decisions based on solid science,” Franciscus said.
Read more....
Spain vows hepatitis C action after calls for new drugs
Madrid (AFP) - Spain's government Monday promised new measures to fight hepatitis C, following protests by patients who complained authorities were denying them the latest drugs to treat the deadly liver disease.
A new committee will draw up a proposal within three weeks of examining the extent of the illness and clinical criteria, aiming to "include newly authorised drugs" in treatment plans, the health ministry said in a statement.
But it did not specify whether it would widen access to the latest generation of hepatitis drugs to more patients as campaigners in Spain and other countries are demanding.
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