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50,000 people have Hep C in New Zealand, but a recent Pharmac announcement about funding for two new drug treatments will not help all of them, CATE BROUGHTON writes.
Naomi Wickens lived with Hepatitis C (HVC) for 45 years, but was cured with a generic drug imported from India this year at a cost of $2500.
Wickens, 67, is one among many Kiwis forced to use generic drugs sourced from overseas to treat their condition.
“The ease with which I got access to treatment was extraordinary. This is how it should be. It’s life saving treatment, saving the country untold money by avoiding the need for severe liver disease and liver transplants,” says the Masterton-based counsellor.
This month, Pharmac announced it would fund two new hepatitis C treatments, Harvoni and Viekira Pakbut, but doctors say it will only help 50 per cent of those with the illness.
Why will only some people get help and not others?
Pharmac’s money will help patients with genotype 1 and a small number who are on death’s door with severe liver failure, giving them hope for a healthy future.
But for 50 per cent of patients with other genotypes there is no celebrating.
“While it is good news for those with genotype 1 Hepatitis C, there is no funded Direct Acting Anti-Virals (DAAV) for people with the other strains so that’s difficult for those patients,” says hepatitis specialist Catherine Stedman.