By KYIV. Dec 14 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The pharmaceutical company Sanofi signed managed access agreements (MAAs) with the Ministry of Health for the supply of orphan drugs in early December, negotiations continued for several months.
"Sanofi responded positively to the invitation of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine to take part in the negotiation procedure for the potential conclusion of three-year managed access agreements for the purchase of medicines for orphan patients. Negotiations that lasted several months were completed successfully, the terms were agreed upon by the negotiating group and the corresponding managed access agreements were concluded in early December," Oleksandr Melnyk, head of the specialized assistance department at Sanofi Ukraine, told Interfax-Ukraine.
He noted that the company viewed MAAs "as an opportunity to ensure continued and predictable access for patients with mucopolysaccharidosis type 1, Gaucher disease and Pompe disease to treatment in these challenging conditions."
According to Melnyk, the conclusion of MAAs "is a successful global practice that can significantly expand access to innovative treatment for Ukrainian patients, if used correctly."
In turn, Natalia Baranovska, head of the government relations department at Sanofi Ukraine, said that in addition to the conclusion of MAAs, Sanofi continued to provide assistance to patients with orphan diseases as part of its international humanitarian program ICAP (International Charitable Access Program).
As part of this campaign, 16 patients with rare diseases forced to leave Ukraine due to the war received assistance from Sanofi abroad, including within the ICAP, and seven patients with Gaucher disease received treatment under this program in Ukraine.
In addition, in October 2022, Sanofi expanded the ICAP program with a new nosology and, for the first time in the history of Ukraine, a patient with Niemann-Pick disease received free access to treatment.
"Ukraine has become the first country in Europe where Sanofi provided this medicine free of charge," Baranovska stressed.
As reported with reference to the assessment of the Ministry of Health, by the end of 2022, savings in the procurement of medicines using the MAA mechanism will amount to about $10 million. Procurement contracts in 2022 under the MAA mechanism were concluded with Sanofi, BioMarin, Takeda and Roche.
