NHS England joins up with Merck on MS treatment

NHS England has approved a commercial agreement that allows NHS patients in England with multiple sclerosis (MS) immediate access to the new treatment, cladribine tablets (Mavenclad®).

NHS England and Merck, the manufacturer of the tablets, have partnered on the commercial access agreement, representing a ‘win-win-win’ for the NHS, patients and industry at a time of intense financial pressure on the NHS.

This commercial agreement follows the recent positive recommendation from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). NICE recently issued a Final Appraisal Determination (FAD) that recommends cladribine tablets as an option for treating highly active MS in adults.

This is the first MS disease-modifying therapy that has gone straight to a positive final recommendation in the NICE appraisal process, involving just one committee meeting. In the FAD, NICE concluded that cladribine tablets are less costly than other treatments and require less frequent dosing and monitoring techniques.

Elisabeth Prchla, Merck UK general manager, said: “We are delighted with the NHS England decision on this commercial agreement, which will see patients in England access the treatment immediately. This is a first of its kind in multiple sclerosis, which can also be a benchmark for the future, bringing together the NHS, government and industry to achieve faster access for patients, in line with the UK’s Life Sciences Industrial Strategy.

“This milestone underscores our commitment to unmet needs in the MS community – we have been working closely with NHS England to find a solution that not only provides access to our medicine as early as possible but will also save the NHS money at a time of immense financial pressures.”

Marco Lyons, head of medical neurology and immunology at Merck, said: “Merck is committed to improving the lives of patients with MS through the delivery of innovative medicines and patient support programmes. We are delighted that cladribine tablets are now available for certain patients with highly active relapsing-remitting MS and proud to have worked together with NICE and NHS England to deliver this treatment as early as possible.”