Britain Has No Problem Paying for Expensive Hepatitis C Drugs
This article is for subscribers only.
Sovaldi, a highly effective treatment for the liver disease hepatitis C, has faced backlash in the U.S. over its price tag: $84,000 for a three-month course of treatment, or about $1,000 a pill. The private insurance industry has pushed back hard on the price. State Medicaid directors have said they are concerned about the cost, and paying for the drug is also problematic for prison systems, which must provide health for a lot of inmates who acquired hepatitis C by sharing needles.
Meanwhile, in the U.K., regulators just approved the use of Sovaldi as part of treatment for hepatitis C. The country’s National Health Service will pay about $700 a pill, roughly what some Medicaid programs will pay in the U.S.