IP Rights vs Generic Production of HIV drugs
The well-known global medical aid group, Doctors Without Borders, recently warned at an international AIDS meeting that intellectual property (IP) rights are interfering with the generic production of newer HIV drugs, making them less accessible to HIV patients in developing countries. While prices of older drugs used to treat patients have fallen significantly with the increased manufacture of generics, newer drugs that are more effective against the AIDS virus are up to 15 times more expensive.
Limited Access for HIV patients
Although HIV patients can still be treated with a combination of older medications, those who develop resistance to these drugs will need to be treated with the newer, more expensive ones. With negotiations for a Trans-Pacific Partnership pact in the works, Doctors Without Borders warned that although the pact will favorably increase IP rights, it will also seriously limit access to new therapies, especially for HIV patients in developing countries where the incidence of HIV infection is high.
Recently the World Health Organization has come up with new guidelines recommending earlier treatment for adults with HIV. With these new guidelines, an additional 9 million people in developing countries will be eligible for treatment. Currently, only about 60% of those who need HIV medicines have access to treatment. In large part this is due to cost. On the other hand, the pharma industry argues that the cost of developing new innovative drugs that are more effective is high. What is the solution?
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