Novartis has negotiated Zolgensma access for half of the European SMA population, exec says. How'd it get there?

When Novartis reported first-half Zolgensma sales this summer, the company said its spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) gene therapy was growing thanks to "expanding access" in Europe. This week at the Fierce Biotech Cell & Gene Therapy event, an exec outlined what's driving the uptake.

So far, Novartis has negotiated Zolgensma access for half of the SMA patient population in Europe, including for patients in England, Scotland, France, Germany, Italy, Belgium and other countries, Mike Fraser, general manager of Europe, Middle East and Africa at Novartis Gene Therapies, said in an interview. Novartis also has deals in place with six countries in the Middle East and Africa, he added.