Saskatchewan expands coverage of cystic fibrosis drug

More Saskatchewan children with cystic fibrosis (CF) are about to get help from the provincial government.

On Monday, the provincial government announced it was expanding coverage for the medication Trikafta on Aug. 1 to CF patients six and over who meet the medical criteria.

Coverage for the drug for patients aged 12 and over started Oct. 1 in Saskatchewan.

“We are pleased to be able to expand coverage for this treatment for Saskatchewan children with cystic fibrosis,” Health Minister Paul Merriman said in a media release.

“We know that Trikafta has been shown to improve the quality of life for patients, and this expanded coverage will help children with CF and their families for years to come.”

According to the release, Trikafta targets specific genetic mutations that cause CF — a mutation that affects around 90 per cent of CF patients.

“Today’s news will change the trajectory of the disease and the future for many children in Saskatchewan who live with cystic fibrosis,” Kelly Grover, the president and CEO of Cystic Fibrosis Canada, said in the release.

“Saskatchewan was one of the first provinces to fund the drug for those 12 years of age and older last year, and today has continued to recognize Trikafta’s extraordinary, transformative value, by expanding coverage of Trikafta to include children ages six to 11 years old. We celebrate this news alongside our CF community in Saskatchewan, which has worked tirelessly for this day.”

Health Canada approved Trikafta for children between the ages of six and 11 in April. Earlier this month, the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health recommended the expanded coverage.

The cost of Trikafta is around $300,000 per patient annually.

The government noted that coverage is already provided in Saskatchewan for two other CF drugs that also target specific genetic mutations of the disease: Orkambi and Kalydeco.

Coverage of Orkambi was expanded in July of last year for patients two and up who meet the medical criteria. Kalydeco has been on the Saskatchewan Formulary since 2014.

According to the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Registry, there are more than 110 CF patients in Saskatchewan.