E-drug: Clinton ARV and diagnostics deal expanded (cont'd)
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Will anyone be interested in monitoring the process to see if
any of these reduced price drugs ever actually get to any
PLWA? Pardon my cynicism but every few months we have
one of these announcements, dating back to the original CIPLA
announcement two (or is it 3) years ago or so, then a
WHO/UNAIDS announcement, then announcements from
Brazil, then the Andean generic negotiations, then Paulo
Texeira is going to really get "3 x 5" going. Clinton and Hamied,
WHO, UNAIDS, PAHO and even MSF like to get in the news,
and they do. And theoretically at least they are the "good guys."
I recognize that.
But when it comes to the nitty gritty of actually figuring how to
get this treatment to the people who need it, I don't see these
"newsmakers" lining up to deal with Global Fund and
Government bureacracies, and the many other obstacles that
have to do with getting pills to people. To me some of these
press releases dating back several years are really counter-
productive in the sense that they give everyone a false sense of
complacency that something is actually getting done. The
readers think, "well the AIDS problem is solved," and go on to
some other issue. The media operates on one level, the reality
of the epidemic and solving the problems related to it, is
completely on another level.
I have seen little interest by WHO or UNAIDS or the Global
Fund or anyone else in organizing a press conference to point
out that of the 25,000 people in Latin America who could have
received ARV's from Global Fund projects approved in round
two, 16 months ago, only about 1,500 have them today, and
there is no change in sight. Same is true in India as well, and I
am sure many other countries as well. To me, that is news, but
no reporters are calling.
Why were we so happy with the original CIPLA announcement
by Hamied of $1 a day (his "not for profit" price three years
ago) and then with 3 x 5, and the Global Fund...it was
supposed all solved with these three elements. Since CIPLA, 3
x 5, and Global Fund announcements, so much BS has
occurred that it is unbelieveable.
Well we have "3 x 5": that is to say, 300,000 on treatment and
we are almost to 2005. Oops, was that supposed to be 3
million?? Well, whatever, a million here, a million there...
Doesn't anyone get it??? It doesn't make any difference how
much the damn pills cost if no one is getting them anyway.
Why do even some activists fall into this trap? This New York
Times article is just a piece paper that goes round the world,
that's all.
Sorry to be "politically incorrect" and I hope my cynicism proves
to be entirely unjustified.
greetings,
Richard
Richard Stern
Director
Agua Buena Human Rights Association
Costa Rica
e-mail: rastern@racsa.co.cr
www.aguabuena.org
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