NorthWest Biotherapeutics Inc (NWBO)

[Mike238191]

Insurers willingness to pay is something to consider (although with a big enough survival benefit, they will pretty much have to).

Friend of mine has a child with mild Hemophilia A, which BMRN basically cured with gene therapy. The rub is that insurers probably won’t pay to cure him (once the drug is approved) because his mild form doesn’t require prophylactic factor replacement. He is essentially cheaper to treat rather than cure. So someone with severe Hemophilia A gets cured, and someone with mild Hemophilia isn’t ever allowed to play sports. Go figure.

Gene therapies (cures rather than treatments) will completely change the healthcare landscape over the next 10 years. Our payer system is completely incompatible with the concept of cures.