Orkambi set for reimbursement in Australia despite UK struggle

20 August 2018

Vertex Pharmaceuticals' (Nasdaq: VRTX) Orkambi (lumacaftor/ivacaftor) is set to be reimbursed on Australia's Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme after it was cleared by a cost-effectiveness watchdog.

Australia will join Austria, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, the Netherlands and payers in the USA in reimbursing the blockbuster cystic fibrosis drug, but Orkambi remains out of reach for UK consumers.

A couple of years after its first rejection by the UK's cost-effectiveness watchdog, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), Vertex has been unable to secure a deal for the drug, which is the first to treat the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis in the patient subgroup whose condition derives from the F508del mutation. Kalydeco (ivacaftor) was recommended by the NICE in 2012.

This article is accessible to registered users, to continue reading please register for free. A free trial will give you access to exclusive features, interviews, round-ups and commentary from the sharpest minds in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology space for a week. If you are already a registered user please login. If your trial has come to an end, you can subscribe here.

Try before you buy

Free

7 day trial access

Take a Free Trial

All the news that moves the needle in pharma and biotech
Exclusive features, podcasts, interviews, data analyses and commentary from our global network of life sciences reporters.
Receive The Pharma Letter daily news bulletin, free forever.

Become a subscriber

£820

Or £77 per month

Subscribe Now

Unfettered access to industry-leading news, commentary and analysis in pharma and biotech.
Updates from clinical trials, conferences, M&A, licensing, financing, regulation, patents & legal, executive appointments, commercial strategy and financial results.
Daily roundup of key events in pharma and biotech.
Monthly in-depth briefings on Boardroom appointments and M&A news.
Choose from a cost-effective annual package or a flexible monthly subscription

The Pharma Letter is an extremely useful and valuable Life Sciences service that brings together a daily update on performance people and products. It’s part of the key information for keeping me informed

Chairman, Sanofi Aventis UK