Novartis ’ Spinal Drug Gets FDA Approval, $2 Million Price Tag

(CNN) — The US Food and Drug Administration approved a treatment Friday for a genetic disease called spinal muscular atrophy that causes infants’ muscles to waste away, potentially killing them before age 2. And then came the price tag: $2.125 million for a one-time treatment. The gene therapy, called Zolgensma, will be marketed by AveXis, whose parent company is Novartis. “Today’s approval marks another milestone in the transformational power of gene and cell therapies to treat a wide range of diseases,” Dr. Ned Sharpless, the FDA’s acting commissioner, said in a statement Friday. “The potential for gene therapy products to change the lives of those patients who may have faced a terminal condition, or worse, death, provides hope for the future.” The list price, which was anticipated to be in the low millions, immediately reignited controversy around the rising costs of drugs and how to pay for them. “It is emblematic of our broken system that effectively forces us to pay whatever price drug corporations demand for lifesaving new drugs,” David Mitchell, founder of the advocacy group Patients For Affordable Drugs, said in a statement Friday. Novartis leaders said Friday that the price met their targets of cost-effectiveness, with the newly approved treatment costing about half of what another treatment for the disorder, Spinraza, might cost over 10 years. They said that the company will have patient support and paymen...
Source: WBZ-TV - Breaking News, Weather and Sports for Boston, Worcester and New Hampshire - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Health News CNN Novartis Source Type: news