Alberta has entered a $162-million agreement with the federal government to provide access to drugs for rare diseases.
For months, the two governments have been working on this, as well as a list of such drugs to “help inform future rare disease drug approvals to increase benefits for all rare disease patients,” Alberta’s health minister, Adriana LaGrange, said during a news conference in Edmonton on Thursday.
The first drugs approved to be provided are Poteligeo, for a type of cancer known as Sézary syndrome; Oxlumo, for hyperoxaluria type 1, which can lead to kidney stones and kidney damage; and Epkinly for the treatment of large B-cell lymphoma.
“And we expect to add even more drugs from the agreed-upon list as they become available,” LaGrange said.
Under the National Strategy for Drugs for Rare Diseases, Alberta will …