Warranties could smooth path for gene therapies, other high-priced medicines

Gene therapies and other expensive medicines should come with warranties that provide compensation, including for patients’ out-of-pocket costs, if they don’t perform as anticipated. That’s the idea behind a line of business that Octaviant Financial, a financial services company, and Marsh, a multinational insurance brokerage, launched this week.

The two companies have negotiated a warranty program with a gene therapy manufacturer that could be rolled out this year, if the company’s product is approved, Emad Samad, president and CEO of Octaviant Financial Inc., told BioCentury. Information about the therapy and the warranty will be disclosed after approval, he said. ...