The patient died due to the delay in Kymriah benefits

Submitted a petition for fast track for Kymriah

Ko Eun-chan's mother, "Loan from the 2nd financial sector to buy medicine"

Ko Eun-chan

Korea leukemia patients organization launched a one-man protest, urging the first C-ART treatment Kymriah (Tisagencleucel)'s fast track.

 

The Korea Leukemia Association held a press conference in front of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea at 10 a.m.

 

on the 1st and announced that it submitted a petition to the National Human Rights Commission of Korea demanding Kymriah's health insurance registration and fast track for new drugs.

 

Kymriah is the world's first chimera antigen receptor T-cell treatment that is effective in treating patients with recurrent or refractory B-cell acute lymphocytic leukemia and refractory giant B-cell lymphoma.

 

Although patients are expected to have an effect of 82% cure rate even with one dose, the cost of one dose amounts to about 460 million won.

 

Novartis applied for health insurance registration with the HIRA in March, but failed to pass the Cancer Drugs Benefit Application Committee.

 

Lee Eun-young said, "Kymriah was not presented as an agenda at the 5th Cancer Drugs Benefit Appeal Committee in July and was not passed by the 6th Committee in September." She said, "If pts don't receive Kymriah treatment, they may die within three to six months." Lee Bo-yeon, the mother of Ko Eun-chan, who died in June while battling acute lymphocytic leukemia, also urged the introduction of fast track, saying that the government approved drugs to treat the disease, but they were useless due to the price of 500 million won.

 

Mr.

 

Lee said, "The government has not prepared a plan to allow high-priced drugs such as Kymriah and pay for them by dividing the amount or support the loan system for the use of new drugs." "This forced us to use loans from the second financial sector to raise drug prices," she said.

 

"It's been nearly four months since my child died.

 

"I thought health insurance would be applied soon because the effectiveness of the drug has already been proven and the number of people needed is limited, but I'm angry that the children are dying without any change," she said.

 

"A malignant lymphocyte tumor progresses quickly.

 

Through Kymriah's fast track, we need to make sure that there are no people in Korea who are dying because of lack of money like Eun-chan,"she said.

 

Ahn Ki-jong, CEO of the Patient Association, said, "The Constitution prohibits the right to life and discrimination.

 

Even though Korea is a citizen who pays taxes and health insurance premiums equally, people's lives should not be at stake depending on their economic capabilities." He then said, "After obtaining approval from the MFDS among the expensive new drugs, I only waited for health insurance registration.

 

Eventually, this situation of death has been repeated over the past 15 years, at least patients who need new drugs directly related to life should temporarily apply health insurance at the same time as the MFDS approves to treat patients." Ahn also said, "Starting with Kymriah, we will not let any patients who cannot be treated because they do not have money at least in Korea." The patient association will hold a one-man relay protest in front of Novartis Korea's headquarters from the 1st to urge them to come up with active financial sharing measures.

 

A national petition will be posted on Cheongwadae to convey the position of the patient association to the government and demand improvement.