British Columbia is expanding treatment coverage for chronic hepatitis C to everyone in the province and has added a new drug to the province’s PharmaCare formulary.
“In years past, a hepatitis C diagnosis was a stressful and lifelong struggle,” said Health Minister Adrian Dix, in a news release. “I’m pleased to share that, as of today, anyone in B.C. living with this now-curable virus will have a choice of several treatment options — all of which are fully funded under PharmaCare.”
Read: B.C. to expand drug coverage for hepatitis C patients
The new drug, Vosevi, was developed for particularly hard-to-treat cases of the disease. In addition, B.C.’s formulary covers other hepatitis C medications, including Daklinza, Epclusa, Harvoni and Zepatier.
Hepatitis C affects an estimated 73,000 people in the province, according to the press release, and treatment costs range from $45,000 to $100,000 per patient depending on the drug used and the progression of the disease.
“Drug treatments for chronic hepatitis C continue to improve and evolve,” said Dix. “Adding Vosevi to the PharmaCare formulary will ensure that patients have multiple treatment options available to them, which is especially important if a particular drug is not performing to its best ability.”
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