Cancer drug maker gave last-minute discount deal to HSE

The HSE secured a discount on the cancer medicine Pembrolizumab, after the manufacturer offered a last-minute price reduction.

In a letter to health minister Simon Harris, HSE director general Tony O’Brien said pharmaceutical company MSD had offered “revised commercial terms” in May.

In his June 2 letter to Harris, O’Brien confirmed that the HSE directorate had approved funding of the medicine, dubbed ‘Pembro’, which is used to treat advanced melanoma – or skin ...