Middle-income countries could be excluded from AIDS patent pool, claims MSF
This article was originally published in Scrip
Médecins Sans Frontières is concerned that a number of pharmaceutical companies are seeking to exclude certain developing countries categorised as "middle-income" from benefiting from antiretrovirals made under licence using UNITAID's proposed patent pool.
The humanitarian body does not identify the companies in question. Since last year, UNITAID has been trying to rally support from pharmaceutical firms to put their patents into the pool so that more affordable first and second-line ARVs, including new fixed-dose combination and child-friendly medicines, can be produced by generic firms for HIV patients in developing countries (scripnews.com, July 15th, 2009).
The most advanced discussions, addressing terms and conditions, have taken place with antiretroviral patent-holders – Gilead Sciences, Tibotec (Johnson & Johnson), Merck & Co and the US National Institutes of Health – and the Indian generic firm Cipla, a UNITAID spokesperson told Scrip.
UNITAID's executive board is to discuss a detailed implementation plan on the patent pool next week (December 14th-15th). UNITAID told Scrip that: "The patent pool implementation plan proposal does not exclude middle-income countries."
MSF's Michelle Childs, director of policy/advocacy at MSF's campaign for access to essential medicines, says: "Countries like South Africa, Brazil, Peru, Thailand, India or China are considered lucrative emerging markets for pharmaceutical companies. But they are also countries with significant AIDS epidemics, and face rising drug costs. If they are excluded this will have drastic consequences for patients."
MSF is concerned that UNITAID will give in to the companies' demands. "It is critically important that the UNITAID board make explicit their original commitment that the pool should be for the benefit of all developing countries and that the process for agreeing terms and conditions includes addressing the needs of patients in 'middle-income' countries."
MSF is a supporter of the pool and has sent more than 280,000 letters to pharmaceutical companies asking them to join the scheme. It received responses from nine of the 10 companies who were the focus of the campaign, all of whom confirmed that they were engaged in talks with UNITAID.
Companies targeted by MSF were: Abbott Laboratories, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Gilead Sciences, GlaxoSmithKline, Tibotec Pharmaceuticals/J&J, Merck & Co, Pfizer, Sequoia Pharmaceuticals, and at a later date, ViiV (HIV joint venture between GSK and Pfizer). Gilead was the most enthusiastic about the pool, according to MSF.
A number of firms made "very positive statements about the potential of the pool to help deliver the new formulations that are desperately needed. However, several companies wish to exclude so-called 'middle-income' countries from benefiting from the medicines made under licence from the pool," it added.
A spokesperson for the UK Department for International Development (DFID), which has encouraged pharmaceutical firms to participate in the pool, told Scrip: "We want the pool to benefit as many people as possible in need of treatment."