E-drug: New agreements to make lowest-cost ARVs available
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[Important news, released today on both the UNICEF and
Global Fund websites. See also the Q&A section below. Copied
as fair use from www.unicef.org/media/media_20329.html
Long message, but important. HH]
Joint press release
New agreements aim to make lowest-cost AIDS drugs and
diagnostics available to hundreds of thousands in developing
world Global Fund, World Bank and UNICEF Join with the
Clinton Foundation to Extend Deep Price Reductions Under
Clinton-brokered Agreements
GENEVA/NEW YORK/WASHINGTON, 6 April 2004 - The
Global Fund, the World Bank, UNICEF and the Clinton
Foundation today announced agreements that will make it
possible for developing countries to purchase high-quality AIDS
medicines and diagnostics at the lowest available prices, in
many cases for more than fifty percent less than is currently
available.
Today's agreements will pave the way for countries supported
by the Global Fund, the World Bank and UNICEF to gain
access to drug and diagnostic prices negotiated by the Clinton
Foundation. As provided for under the Clinton Foundation
agreements with its suppliers, beneficiaries of Global Fund and
World Bank grants who are interested in accessing these
agreements should contact the Clinton Foundation to initiate
the process. Countries will be required to provide guarantees of
payment, to conduct long term tenders and to ensure the
security of drug distribution. The Global Fund, World Bank and
UNICEF will support their funding recipients in complying with
these terms, as consistent with their policies and existing
practices.
The Global Fund and the World Bank are among the world's
largest sources of funding commitments to AIDS treatment.
The Global Fund focuses more than 60 percent of the $2.1
billion committed for two years to 122 countries to the fight
against AIDS. The World Bank has currently committed $1.6
billion to fight AIDS through the Multi-country HIV/AIDS
Programs (MAP) and other AIDS operations, including grants
for the poorest countries. UNICEF spent $111 million during
2003 in the fight against AIDS and is rapidly accelerating the
procurement of antiretroviral medicines (ARVs) and AIDS
diagnostic equipment and tests for developing countries.
The prices have been negotiated by the Clinton Foundation
with five manufacturers of ARVs and five manufacturers of
HIV/AIDS diagnostic tests. These prices were announced
originally in October 2003 and January 2004, and to date they
have been available to the 16 countries in the Caribbean and
Africa where the Clinton Foundation's HIV/AIDS Initiative is
active.
The drugs in these agreements include individual formulations
and two- and three-drug fixed dose combinations which have
been pre-qualified by the World Health Organization to assure
quality and efficacy. This standard is a prerequisite for
procurement under Global Fund, World Bank and UNICEF
policies.
These medicines are critical components of the four regimens
recommended by the World Health Organization as "first line"
treatment for AIDS in its 3x5 initiative. In developing countries
outside of Brazil, such life-sustaining therapy is available to
fewer than 200,000 people living with the virus, though almost
six million require it. Recent commitments of financial support
for treatment, along with these lower prices for drugs and tests,
can expand this coverage significantly.
The pharmaceutical manufacturers included in these
agreements are Aspen Pharmacare Holdings in South Africa;
Cipla in India; Hetero Drugs Limited in India, Ranbaxy
Laboratories in India; and Matrix Laboratories in India. The
price for the most common first line formulation under these
agreements is as low as $140 per person per year, one-third to
one-half of the lowest price otherwise available in most settings.
The diagnostic tests included in these agreements are offered
by five leading medical technology companies and include CD4
tests from Beckman Coulter, Inc. and BD (Becton Dickinson
and Company) and viral load tests from Bayer Diagnostics,
bioM�rieux and Roche Diagnostics. The prices available for
these tests under the agreement include machines, training,
reagents and maintenance and are up to 80% cheaper than
otherwise available in the market.
Speaking about these agreements, former U.S. President
William J. Clinton said, "I am grateful for this collective effort,
which will soon help many hundreds of thousands of people,
and eventually millions of people, live longer, healthier lives.
With these agreements, we are one step closer to making sure
future generations can live without the scourge of AIDS. We
are hopeful that developing countries and those who support
them in the fight against AIDS will take full advantage of this
agreement and act quickly to do all they can to help in this
fight."
Richard Feachem, Executive Director of the Global Fund,
affirmed that, "Access to HIV treatment for all who need it is a
moral imperative and now the target of growing financial
commitments. Today's agreements build on sound science,
agreed policy and market economics to maximize the reach of
those commitments. As a result, hundreds of thousands of
additional people will receive the drugs they need to stay alive
and remain healthy."
According to the agreements announced today, the
governments and NGOs supported by Global Fund, World
Bank and UNICEF policies will be able to use the resources of
these organizations to procure drugs and tests available under
the Clinton Foundation arrangements. These agreements are
consistent with existing policies of all three international
organizations.
World Bank President James Wolfensohn said of today's
announcement, "We regard AIDS as being the single most
important issue at the moment in Africa because of the
devastating effect that it has had throughout the Continent, and
it is not something that is deferrable to discussions of economic
or other issues. The emerging epidemic in Asia, Europe and
Central Asia and the Caribbean is also a tremendous concern.
This initiative will help to get treatment to those most in need -
the world's poorest people. The World Bank is pleased to be a
partner in the program and fully supports it."
The Executive Director of UNICEF, Carol Bellamy, added, "This
new partnership works to break down some of the barriers - -
such as price, supply and demand - - that are impeding access
to life-saving AIDS medicines and diagnostics in developing
countries. UNICEF is very proud to be part of this creative
initiative that promises to save lives and bring hope to millions
of children and families around the world."
The Clinton Foundation, Global Fund, World Bank and UNICEF
are committed to exploring additional forms of cooperation to
expand treatment access.
* * * *
The Global Fund is a unique and independent global
public-private partnership dedicated to attracting and disbursing
additional resources to prevent and treat AIDS, tuberculosis
and malaria. This partnership between governments, civil
society, the private sector and affected communities represents
a new approach to international health financing. The Global
Fund works in close collaboration with other bilateral and
multilateral organizations to supplement existing efforts dealing
with the three diseases.
In 2003 the World Bank provided $18.5 billion and worked in
more than 100 developing countries, bringing finance and/or
technical expertise toward helping them reduce poverty. In
addition to financial assistance, the Bank is also a major
provider of implementation support for HIV/AIDS programs
through direct provision of expertise (especially fiduciary),
dissemination of good practice and lessons learned, and
sponsorship of country-to-country learning. The World Bank is
also working with all major stakeholders in scaling up
antiretroviral therapy and its recently issued technical guide,
"HIV/AIDS Medicines and Related Supplies: Contemporary
Context and Procurement" sets out principles and advice to
countries and has generated many messages of support and
appreciation from UN agencies, donors, policymakers, and
NGOs. For more on the Bank's work in the area of HIV/AIDS,
visit: www.worldbank.org/aids
UNICEF works in 158 countries to ensure that all children
survive and thrive through adolescence. UNICEF's efforts on
the ground emphasize immunization and micronutrients; the
best start in life, including safe water and sanitation, basic
health and nutrition, and loving interaction; education for all
children; fighting HIV/AIDS and caring for children orphaned by
the disease; and a protective environment that shields children
from abuse, exploitation and violence. UNICEF is funded
entirely by voluntary contributions from governments,
foundations, businesses and individuals.
The Clinton Foundation HIV/AIDS Initiative has been at work for
more than a year helping individual governments in Africa and
the Caribbean to develop scalable AIDS care, treatment and
prevention strategies. In the Caribbean, the Foundation is
working with nine countries and three territories which together
have over 90% of people living with AIDS in the Caribbean. In
Africa, the Foundation is working with Mozambique, Rwanda,
South Africa and Tanzania which together have about 33% of
all people living with AIDS in Africa. The Foundation is also
working to change the economics of HIV/AIDS care and
treatment. The first agreements it has brokered have
dramatically reduced the prices of ARVs and AIDS diagnostics.