AEGiS-AFROL: AIDS and malaria medicines getting cheaper

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2002. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

AIDS and malaria medicines getting cheaper

afrol News - September 5, 2002

5 September - The medicines to fight two of Africa's most prominent killers, the HIV virus and the malaria parasite, are becoming significantly cheaper. GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) today announced that it has reduced the not-for-profit preferential prices of its HIV/AIDS medicines by up to 33 percent and its anti-malarial medicines by up to 38 percent.

The US-based multinational company states the price cut has been made to help HIV and malaria victims in developing countries. The price reductions were the latest stage in GSK's "efforts to improve healthcare in the developing world through preferential pricing, community investment, and research and development of medicines and vaccines for developing world diseases."

- We are today delivering on our commitment to review prices for these essential medicines for patients in 63 of the world's poorest countries, said Jean-Pierre Garnier, CEO of GlaxoSmithKline. "We are also expanding our existing initiatives in sub-Saharan Africa to find appropriate ways to offer not-for-profit prices to core public employees such as teachers, nurses, police and fire-fighters not covered by health insurance, and to private employers who do not have their own workplace clinics."

GSK has also stated it will supply these medicines at not-for-profit prices to all projects fully financed by the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria. In addition, it is seeking regulatory approval for special packaging to differentiate the preferentially priced medicines sold under its access initiatives. The price reductions were the result of "a review of manufacturing costs and of increased economies of scale."

The company sets a single, sustainable, not-for-profit, preferential price for each of its anti-retrovirals and anti-malarials to eligible customers in the Least Developed Countries and sub-Saharan Africa. Sustainable preferential pricing means setting prices at levels that meet the company costs and ensure a sustained supply of these medicines for as long as patients need them.

Emphasising the need for global partnerships, Dr. Garnier said, "GSK's approach on improving access to medicines is based on partners working together to establish a sustainable framework for improved healthcare in developing countries. This framework includes pharmaceutical industry commitment to preferential pricing, as well as government support for intellectual property protection and prevention of both diversion and price- referencing of preferentially-priced medicines."

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