GILD Gilead Sciences Inc

By Peter Loftus 

A federal judge ordered Pennsylvania's corrections department to provide costly new antiviral drugs to an inmate infected with hepatitis C, and rebuked the state for restricting inmates' access to the drugs.

Hepatitis C is an epidemic in prisons, but state corrections departments have treated relatively few prisoners because the drugs are expensive, costing about $54,000 to $94,500 per patient.

The new antivirals, sold by Gilead Sciences Inc., AbbVie Inc. and Merck & Co., began hitting the market in 2013 and have higher cure rates and less severe side effects than older treatments. Hepatitis C is transmitted by via infected blood, including through needle sharing. Chronic infection can cause serious liver damage if left untreated.

Public and private health insurers also have restricted use of the drugs -- sparking lawsuits by patients seeking access. In May, a federal judge ordered Washington state's Medicaid program to pay for treatments for all infected patients, not just the sickest. National medical societies say most infected patients should receive the drugs.

Pennsylvania's Department of Corrections has a policy of providing the drugs only to inmates with signs of advanced disease such as cirrhosis, according to court documents.

Mumia Abu-Jamal, a well-known prisoner serving a life sentence after being convicted of murdering a Philadelphia police officer in 1981, filed a lawsuit against corrections officials last year, alleging that their failure to treat his hepatitis C violated the Eighth Amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishments of prisoners. State prison officials had determined his disease wasn't severe enough to warrant treatment, according to the lawsuit. Mr. Abu-Jamal was originally sentenced to death, but a federal court overturned that sentence after a high-profile appellate campaign that drew support from capital-punishment opponents, including celebrities. His murder conviction has been upheld.

The corrections department fought the lawsuit, contending that its treatment policy was appropriate. In a court document last year, the state also said giving the drugs to all infected inmates would cost about $600 million and would squeeze other medical care and security needs.

U.S. District Judge Robert Mariani in Scranton, Pa., on Tuesday issued a preliminary injunction ordering the Pennsylvania corrections department to provide "the most current medications" to Mr. Abu-Jamal.

The judge wrote Mr. Abu-Jamal "has a serious medical condition. He will continue to suffer from chronic hepatitis C if he doesn't receive treatment. His liver will continue to scar and its functioning will continue to deteriorate." The judge ordered prison officials to arrange for Mr. Abu-Jamal to see a doctor within two weeks, and to provide the treatment unless the doctor determines there are contraindications that would bar treatment.

The ruling applies only to Mr. Abu-Jamal, but the judge also criticized the corrections department's treatment policy, saying it has a "fatal flaw" because it imposes an "unreasonable condition" on eligibility for treatment -- having severe liver scarring or cirrhosis.

Some other Pennsylvania inmates have filed a separate lawsuit against the state, seeking treatment for all infected prisoners. The lawsuit is pending, and similar suits are pending in Minnesota, Massachusetts and Missouri.

Bret Grote, legal director of the Abolitionist Law Center, who represents Mr. Abu-Jamal, said the ruling "is an important victory in the effort to establish a right to the cure for hepatitis C."

Gabriel Eber, attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union's prisoner-rights project, said the Pennsylvania ruling is the first time that a federal court has ordered that the new hepatitis C medications be administered to a prisoner.

A spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania corrections department said it is reviewing the ruling.

Write to Peter Loftus at peter.loftus@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 04, 2017 14:50 ET (19:50 GMT)

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