Biogen's muscle disease treatment Spinraza has been deemed too expensive for use on Britain's state-run health service, even after a price discount offered by the U.S. drugmaker. “But type 1 is a big unknown because these cases are not as cost-effective. “The new children’s hospital in Dublin will cost over €2 billion, making it the most expensive hospital in the world,” he said. That is despite Spinraza, which is also known as nusinersen, having a lower British price tag of 450,000 pounds ($573,000) for the first year and Biogen offering an undisclosed discount to the National Health Service (NHS). We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. Henderson said that anywhere from 800 to 1,400 people in Britain are living with the disease at any given time, with 70 to 75 new patients being diagnosed annually.

Spinraza, which has a U.S. list price of $750,000 in the first year of treatment, is a big money-spinner in Biogen’s home market. On Feb. 28, Rare Disease Day, his group staged an even bigger rally, attracting more than 300 people.

At present, 24 of the European Union’s 28 member nations have now agreed to reimburse for Spinraza; the remaining holdouts are Estonia, Ireland, Latvia, and the United Kingdom. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. In a Feb. 21 letter to Mannering’s group, the Irish government’s Health Services Executive said it would not reimburse for Spinraza at the current price offering, which it said was €600,000 (about $678,000) per patient for the first year and €380,000 (about $430,000) a year thereafter — translating into “an estimated budget impact in excess of €20 million (about $22.6 million) over a five-year period.”, But a Biogen official confirmed in a March 1 letter to Mannering that “the figures quoted by HSE are six months out of date,” yet that “due to the confidential nature of ongoing negotiations, Biogen cannot comment further on the discussions we are having with HSE regarding pricing.”. “Even with the proposed confidential discount the cost of nusinersen is too high for it to be considered a cost-effective use of NHS resources,” the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) said. We never use your cookies for creepy ad retargeting that follows you around the web. NICE’s committee of experts also raised concerns that there were still significant uncertainties around the long-term benefits of the medicine. It does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. NHS England’s position is they don’t provide treatments that aren’t cost-effective.”. Last December, Poland’s Ministry of Health approved reimbursement of Spinraza, but only after a long fight that involved an intense media campaign and online petition organized by Rucinski’s Warsaw-based foundation.

Spinraza, which has a U.S. list price of $750,000 in the first year of treatment, is a big money-spinner in Biogen’s home market. “That’s reality. The meeting follows a draft recommendation issued last September against adding Spinraza to the subsidized public health system of England and Wales because of its “extremely high cost.” At that time, the committee had concluded that, based on its list price, Spinraza’s annual cost-effectiveness ranged between £400,000 and £600,000 (about $524,000 to $786,000) per Quality Adjusted Life Year (QALY) gained, making it too expensive for it to be considered a cost-effective use of resources by the National Health Service (NHS). In Scotland, he said, “Spinraza will now be refunded retroactively, while England, Wales and Northern Ireland are still waiting.

You can read full notes of the meeting on 25 April here Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. He pointed out that Ireland — home to an estimated 70 people with SMA — has one of the highest per-capita incomes in Europe, and the eighth-best performing economy worldwide, according to the World Economic Forum.