The funding is tied to a federal model designed to help Medicaid programs pay for expensive cell and gene therapies. It would help cover treatment for patients on Medicaid and other state-sponsored insurance plans and allow Virginia to pay separately for the gene therapy drug and the care needed to deliver it.
Sickle cell disease is an inherited blood disorder that can cause severe pain and organ damage. Gene therapy is a new treatment option for sickle cell disease that can help some patients produce healthier blood cells. But it is a long and intensive process that requires chemotherapy first, which can affect fertility.
Madeeha Deo, medical director at the Sentara-EVMS Comprehensive Sickle Cell Program, said the region has the largest adult sickle cell population in Virginia, with an estimated 800 to 1,200 adults living with the disease.