The Minister for Health Vaughan Gething has this week confirmed an agreement with Vertex Pharmaceuticals to secure access to the medicine Kaftrio® in Wales.

The medicine will be available for eligible patients with Cystic Fibrosis (CF) from the point at which it is granted its European marketing authorisation later this summer. This follows a last year’s agreement which made Vertex’s other medicines, Kalydeco®, Orkambi® and Symkevi® available for CF patients in Wales.

The Minister for Health, Vaughan Gething, said: “I’m pleased to confirm Kaftrio® will be made available to all eligible patients in Wales. I know many families will welcome the news. I have always made it clear that new and innovative medicines should be made available quickly and consistently for patients in Wales but only where their cost fairly reflects the evidence of their benefits.

“The agreement reached with Vertex means that patients can begin to benefit from triple therapy treatment without delay when it becomes available in the UK in the coming weeks.”