Posted by Michael Wonder on 24 Jan 2020
After years of campaigning, PHARMAC agrees to fund 'wonder drug' to treat kids with cystic fibrosis
24 January 2020 - PHARMAC has reached a provisional agreement with medicine supplier Vertex to fund the long-campaigned for drug Kalydeco for New Zealanders with cystic fibrosis.
The announcement was made today and - if feedback from a a consultation process with health professionals is supportive, and the proposal approved - patients could get access to the drug from as early as March 1st.
Until now, New Zealand has been the only OECD country to not fund Kalydeco, with many patients considering a shift to Australia to gain access to it.
