Whether it has made any assessment of the pipeline deal agreed between Vertex Pharmaceuticals and the Irish Government to ensure that peopl…

Answered Asked by Miles Briggs Con Lodged 5 Jul 2017

The question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has made any assessment of the pipeline deal agreed between Vertex Pharmaceuticals and the Irish Government to ensure that people living with cystic fibrosis in Ireland have access to the best treatments for the next 10 years, and what the implications are for negotiations for access to the cystic fibrosis drug, Orkambi, in Scotland and the rest of UK.

The answer

Answered by Shona Robison on 28 Jul 2017 · 23 days after it was lodged, on time

I wrote to Vertex Pharmaceuticals in March to encourage them to take forward discussions about the cost of Orkambi® with colleagues in National Health Services Scotland who are best placed to advise them on pricing approaches and a fair price that could support the securing of a positive recommendation from the Scottish Medicines Consortium for the prescribing of these products in NHSScotland. Those talks are underway.
Through those discussions we hope that the manufacturer will make their best offer on price and indicate that they will re-submit an application for Orkambi® to the SMC.

In the Official Report

No contribution in the Official Report cites S5W-10195 by reference.