Zolgensma, a drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of infants with spinal muscular atrophy, costs $2.1 million for a single dose. This is the highest per-dose price of any medication ever created. With no treatment, most children will die by age 2. The maker of Zolgensma, Novartis, stated that it expected insurance companies would cover the cost of treatment.
Zolgensma is the second drug to be approved for the treatment of spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), after Biogen’s Spinraza. Spinraza treatments are lifelong with a cost of $375,000 a year. Competition in the marketplace should lead to lower prices in the long term. Roche is currently trailing a daily pill called risdiplam for the treatment of SMA. Without any treatment, SMA remains the top genetic killer of children under the age of 2.
Much debate exists related to Zolgensma and other high-cost drugs. However, it must be understood that the cost of developing drugs is very high with the cost of one drug being about $2.6 billion. There must also be a financial incentive for companies to continue to develop new treatments.
Reference:
I have SMA. Critics of the $2 million new therapy are missing the point. (2019, May 31). Retrieved July 31, 2019, from STAT website: https://www.statnews.com/2019/05/31/spinal-muscular-atrophy-zolgensma-price-critics/
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