Bay Area Reporter - December 7, 2000
S. Predrag

Fluconazole (Diflucan) free of charge for the next two years.

More than 100,000 patients in South Africa, suffering from cryptococcal meningitis (a sometimes fatal fungal brain infection) and oesophageal candidiasis, are expected to benefit from this deal, valued at $50 million.

Up until now, due to the high cost of Fluconazole, most South Africans could not be treated for these HIV-related infections in government hospitals. In fact, Fluconazole was available only in private hospitals and at certain drug stores for a price between 80 and 124 rands - which only a small percentage of patients could afford.

After signing the deal with Pfizer, Tshabalala-Msimang told reporters that, "The lack of equitable access to affordable drugs exposes the pitfalls in the world's trading systems."

She stressed that, "This is a sore point between the major drug manufacturers, based mainly in the developed countries, and the disproportionately affected and resource-constrained developing countries."

Indicating that the agreement could serve as a model for possible future deals, the health minister said that the South African government "support(s) generic substitution, compulsory licensing, parallel importing, and the strengthening of production capacity because these strategies are critical in achieving the goal of access to affordable drugs."

This is not the first time that the deal with Pfizer was announced - it was first discussed publicly during the 13th International AIDS Conference held in July in Durban, South Africa.

Last week, however, a deal was officially signed. Still, some critics remain cautious, and pointed out that the South African government and Pfizer have signed "only a memorandum of understanding".

Some skeptics, particularly members of the Treatment Action Campaign, prefer to wait and see. They say they will only be convinced of the deal when they see the drug being delivered free of charge to government hospitals and clinics.

"We are tired of announcements that amount to nothing," said TAC chairperson Zackie Achmat. Achmat is living with AIDS, but has decided to refuse antiretroviral therapy until it is available to everybody through the public health sector.

Achmat recently illegally imported 3,000 biozole capsules, the generic equivalent of Fluconazole, from Thailand for a fraction of the price being charged for Pfizer's drug in South Africa.

While TAC claims that the deal could be "a public relations ceremony for World AIDS Day," the South African government and Pfizer maintain that the free drugs will be available quite soon.

For Queenie Qiza, one of TAC's most outspoken activists, the announcement came too late. Just three days before the signing of the deal with Pfizer, she died from AIDS-related complications.

On the day she died, Qiza sat in bed signing postcards to President Thabo Mbeki and Tshabalala-Msimang, "demanding access to health care for people with AIDS," reported a local daily, the Cape Times.

TAC activists still insist that the deal with Pfizer is "too little, too late." They particularly point to the timing of the announcement - just days after the South African Medicines Control Council granted conditional registration to a cheap generic equivalent of fluconazole.

In the meantime, High Court Judge Edwin Cameron, who is openly gay and HIV-positive, donated his $10,000 Mandela prize to TAC as a sign of appreciation for its attempts to bring down the price of anti-HIV/AIDS drugs.

001207
BR001206

Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 2000. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.

AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is often presented in summary or aggregate form. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.

Copyright ©1980, 2000. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content. .