Rep. Dana Rohrabacher recently asked the federal government to approve coverage for Provenge, a treatment for men with advanced prostate cancer.
Dendreon, the company that manufactures Provenge, is building a factory in Seal Beach.
“I respectfully request the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ careful consideration of inquiries for a National Coverage Determination pertaining to a Sipuleucel T treatment called Provenge,” Rohrabacher wrote in a letter dated July 29.
Rohrabacher said the Dendreon factory in Seal Beach would be a welcome partner in his 46th District of California.
The 46th District includes the cities of Seal Beach, Huntington Beach, part of Long Beach and Avalon.
A National Coverage Determination occures when “The Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services determines whether or not a particular item or service is covered nationally by Medicare,” according to the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance Web site.
“NCDs are binding on all Medicare carriers, fiscal intermediaries, quality improvement organizations, health maintenance organizations, competitive medical plans and health care prepayment plans,” the Cancer Care Alliance Web site said.
If the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid approve Provenge for coverage, the decision could increase the number of patients who can pay for the treatment.
Dendreon has placed a $93,000 price tag on a program of three Provenge treatments, according to both FierceBiotech.com and Xeconomy.com.
The Xeconomy Web site cited an April 29 conference call with Dendreon Chief Operating Officer Hans Bishop as the source for the figure.
Provenge is apparently expensive because it is custom made from the blood of individual patients.
Heidi Maitland, a representative of Dendreon Corp., told the Seal Beach Planning Commission on Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2009, Provenge basically teaches a patient’s immune system to fight the cancer.
Planners approved a conditional use permit for the factory that night. However, because the Food and Drug Administration had not yet approved Provenge, planners changed the CUP to require the applicant to begin construction within one year from the date the company took occupancy of the 1700 Saturn Way factory site.
According to information provided to planning staff by Lifetek Solutions, Inc., there will be 300 people on average in the Dendreon factory at any one time, with 390 at shift change.
The FDA approved Provenge in April 2010.
The FDA’s decision to licence Provenge was a major boost to the company’s finances. You see, Provenge is currently the only product Dendreon manufactures.
Dendreon recently reported that revenue for the quarter ended June 30, 2010 was $2.8 million compared to $25,000 for the quarter ended June 30, 2009.
Unfortunately, that increase in income did not translate into profit. The net loss for the quarter ended June 30, 2010 was $142.6 million.
