Another major U.S. health insurer, UnitedHealthCare, has said it would cover the first-ever approved drug for the rare disease spinal muscular atrophy, a closely watched bellwether in the national debate over drug prices. While UHC’s policy is less restrictive than the one disclosed recently by rival insurer Anthem, UHC has nonetheless set limits and will only pay past an initial handful of doses if doctors can prove the drug is working.
