Sen. Bill Cassidy plots a path for more commercially viable cell and gene therapies

With the like­ly ap­proval of a new gene edit­ing ther­a­py com­ing this week for CRISPR Ther­a­peu­tics and Ver­tex, Sen. Bill Cas­sidy (R-LA) on Tues­day called on in­sur­ers to pro­vide a clear­er road map on how they plan to cov­er the ex­pen­sive but po­ten­tial­ly cost-sav­ing ther­a­pies.

Cas­sidy, who forged a sub­scrip­tion-like deal to ex­pand ac­cess to new he­pati­tis C cures in his state, is now de­bat­ing how best to help the field of cell and gene ther­a­pies. His of­fice notes that more than one mil­lion pa­tients may re­ceive a gene ther­a­py by the end of 2034, with spend­ing eclips­ing $12 bil­lion.

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