Kalydeco : Cystic fibrosis drug added to Ont. drug benefit

The government has officially added a costly medication to the Ontario drug benefit formulary.

KALYDECO is a prescription medicine used for the treatment of cystic fibrosis (CF) in patients age 6 years and older who have one of the following mutations in their CF gene: G551D, G1244E, G1349D, G178R, G551S, S1251N, S1255P, S549N, or S549R, costs $300,000 a year.

Madi Vanstone, 12, has a form of cystic fibrosis that responds to the drug. She petitioned the government to cover the cost that was quickly putting her family into debt. After two personal pleas to the legislature, a deal has been reached.

Funding for this drug will be through the Exceptional Access Program (EAP), which requires doctors to submit a request for funding on their patient’s behalf.

Vanstone has been fighting for 14 months to have the cost of the life saving drug picked up.

Agencies/Canadajournal