BASEL, Switzerland, Feb 13 (AFP) - Swiss pharmaceutical group Roche said on Thursday that it had decided to extend substantial cuts in the price of its HIV/AIDS drugs sold in poorer countries.
Pharmaceutical companies have been severely criticised for the high prices of HIV/AIDS drugs in poor countries, where life-saving treatments are virtually unaffordable for most people affected by the disease.
A pack of 270 Viracept pills, equivalent to one month's treatment, will be sold for 90.90 Swiss francs (62 euros, 67 dollars) in sub-Saharan countries of Africa and other least developed countries, which are the hardest hit by the disease.
It will also be sold at 300 to 420 Swiss francs in low to middle income countries, the company said in a statement.
At the moment, the wholesale price of the drug in Switzerland is 561 Swiss francs.
Roche had already implemented a "no-profit" pricing on the drug two years ago for use with children in poor countries, but it said in a statement that the new cut was aimed at the adult formulation of the drug.
The company will also extend its "no-profit" pricing policy to Invirase for adults, to 95.40 Swiss francs and 300 Swiss francs respectively.
"The 'no-profit' prices... are the lowest prices at which the products can be provided in a sustainable manner. They do not reflect research or development costs, marketing costs, distribution costs or company overheads," Roche said.
It said retail prices "may vary significantly".
The prices, which will only be charged to governments, non-profit health care organisations and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are for direct supply from Roche's Basel headquarters, and do not include the cost of air freight and transport or storage.
"The 'no-profit' prices are designed to facilitate greatest possible access to Invirase and Viracept in these hardest hit regions of the world and we will request these governments to eliminate tax and duty mark-ups for these essential medicines," William Burns, head of Roche Pharma, said.
"While our policy has significantly reduced prices and removed patent issues as barriers to HIV therapy, it would be wrong to suggest that we can solve the problem through these steps alone. Affordability is only one of many barriers to care in developing countries," he added.
Roche's step was welcomed by Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), the medical relief group, which had targeted the Swiss pharmaceutical company in its campaign for cheaper HIV/AIDS medicines.
"We are very pleased with this price reduction, and glad to see that Roche acknowledges that its pricing policy was flawed," Daniel Berman of MSF said in a statement.
Berman said that the struggle to achieve the price cuts showed the limitations of a voluntary system and said the production of generic, patent-free medicines remained the best way of driving down the cost of treatment.
"For new drugs, there needs to be an internationally supported, enforceable system that reduces prices to affordable levels in developing countries," he said.
MSF said nelfinavir, which Roche produces under licence with the brand name Viracept, had been "significantly more expensive" in Guatemala and Ukraine than in Switzerland.
Roche said it would not act against infringments of its patent rights on medicines in least-developed countries, and would not seek patents on new HIV/AIDS medications in those regions.
The issue of prices, patents and access to essential medicines has been under negotiation at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in Geneva, with the United States holding out against an agreement that would allow poor countries the blanket right to import cut-price generic drugs to combat HIV/AIDS.
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