STAT+: Vertex reaches a new deal with NHS England over its pricey cystic fibrosis treatments

After months of haggling, Vertex Pharmaceuticals and the National Health Service in England reached agreement over access to several cystic fibrosis treatments, capping an end to a long-running saga that frequently enraged patients and families who sought the treatments.

Specific details were not released, but the deal was announced after a U.K. cost-effectiveness watchdog decided to recommend the Vertex medicines for coverage by the NHS. Last November, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence acknowledged the medications offered notable clinical benefits, but did not endorse the value, pending further deliberations and public comments.

The arrangement will cover a groundbreaking treatment called Trikafta — which is known as Kaftrio in the U.K. — and two other cystic fibrosis medications sold by the company for all existing and future patients in England, as well as any license extensions made later. Vertex and the agencies also agreed to “work together” to provide access for the next iteration of Trikafta, a triple combination medication.

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