E-DRUG: lumefantrin-artemether (Co-artem) survey
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[A request from our francophone colleagues (E-med) to support a project
being carried out at ReMeD (Network for Medicines and
Developpement-Paris) WB]
As the result of an agreement between the pharmaceutical firm Novartis and
the World Health Organization, Coartem (lumefantrin-artemether) is being
made available to WHO at cost for use in public sector of disease endemic
developing countries, making this new approach to treating malaria more
accessible to those who are most in need. (the combination
lumefantrin-artemether has been approved for inclusion in the WHO model list
in April 2002.)
At the special WHO price, a treatment course costs US$2.4 for an adult and
US$0.90 for the youngest age-group (children >10kg). The public sector
presentation puts the full three day supply provided on one blister.
The minimum size per order and per destination is limited to 3240 individual
treatment courses. The shelf life of the product is 24 months, so the
request for purchase of the drug should be made at least 6 months prior to
the time that the product is required at the port of entry within the
country.
So, I have a few questions :
- Did your country place an order for the Coartem through WHO ? When ?
- Has your request been awarded, and if not, why ?
- Did you get the Coartem at the right time ?
- If you add the time needed for distribution within the country to the
areas where the drug is intended to be used, what is the shelf life finally
?
- In your country, is Coartem available in the private sector too, and at
what price ?
I thank you all for your cooperation and hope the answers will be
interesting for all of you.
Isabelle Marquet
pharmacist
marquet.isabelle@wanadoo.fr
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