From what I understand Dr Ryder, who is extremely pro-active at highlighting the plight of English HepC patients, says that if NHS England had agreed to treat 5,000 more patients, Gilead would have reduced the price even more. Quite rightly he doesn't understand why they haven't done this. I wonder why. (Note, no ?).
Portugal eg agreed to treat ALL and have done so, in fairness to Gilead, they got the drugs at a highly reduced price and apparently 96% Portuguese HepC patients are now cured.
NHS England is now full of highly paid managerial suits with privatisation and business interests at heart, not patients (some corruption cases recently brought to light) , if we leave Europe I reckon we can wave goodbye to free healthcare. Some great NHS staff who are treated badly under this government know it, one told me 'The NHS are bastards'. eg they just got a 'payrise' of 1% a friend told me with the current rise in National Insurance (originally set up to pay for free NHS treatment ha ha) his wage packet was actually less than before his pay rise. Meanwhile our Gvt (most who have shares & interested in private medical companies & big pharma and something like 90% who were born millionaires) recently awarded themselves a 14% payrise while trying to cut junior Dr pay causing the first NHS strike in decades.
NHS Scotland however are on a mighty path to eliminate HepC and are way ahead.
The HepC Trust are raising funds for a judicial review to question the legailty.
Sadly, It's a corrupt mess and it would take a mighty force to untangle it.
GT1a Dec14 F2/8.7 VL 900000-2.5M
Jan16 Hepcivir-L MonkMed/Redemption
Baseline: VL 913575 Alt 76 Platelets low
Wk2 VL1157 Alt 23
DET Wk 8 VL 32 Alt19 'In the slow lane'
June16 Fibro 5.7 F0/1 LIF 1.5
Wk 11 VL<12 Alt 13 Det/Unq
Extending tx 12 wks Mylan Sofo/Dac MonkMed
Wk 14 VL <12 Det/Unq
Wk 16 VL UNDETECTED
Wk 22 + 4 Wks Sunprevir FixHepC
Wk 24 UNDETECTED Alt 13
Wk 12 post tx SVR12 Wk 26 SVR24
Thank-you Tim, Dr Debasis @ MonkMed & Dr Freeman @ Fix HepC