Hongkongers to pay only HK$240 a year for leukaemia drug after system shake-up

Hospital Authority says it began subsidising Dasatinib in April, with patients previously paying up to HK$500,000 annually for treatment More than 400 cancer patients are set to benefit from Hong Kong health authorities’ decision to subsidise a leukaemia drug, reducing annual treatment costs from up to HK$500,000 (US$63,800) to just HK$240. The Hospital Authority said on Wednesday that it began subsidising the medication, Dasatinib, in April, with the government expected to allocate an additional HK$49 million in annual spending to help cover the cost. As part of the move, Dasatinib was reclassified from a “self-financed item” to a “special drug” in the authority’s medication database. This means patients can buy it at a subsidised cost, regardless of their financial status, as long as they meet the relevant clinical criteria. The authority also announced that more Hong Kong residents could now qualify for a drug subsidy fund, following a relaxation of its means-tested criteria based on patients’ salaries and assets. William Chui Chun-ming, the authority’s chief pharmacist, said Dasatinib’s reclassification was a result of the medication’s positioning as a second-line treatment for leukaemia under international guidelines.

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