Pfizer Inc. is offering to give away an expensive AIDS drug to poor South Africans, a move that follows a series of protests and raises hopes other pharmaceutical companies will follow suit.
The drug, Diflucan, treats cryptococcal meningitis, a lethal brain infection that occurs in nearly one out of 10 HIV-patients.
In South Africa, the daily dose of Diflucan costs about $15, far more than the country‘s many poor can afford. Those with the infection must take medication for the rest of their lives.
The HIV and AIDS Treatment Action Campaign, an advocacy group, had lobbied the New York-based Pfizer for a year to reduce the drug‘s price, said volunteer coordinator Midi Achmat. Last month, a group of protesters broke into Pfizer‘s New York headquarters to demand a meeting with Chairman William Steere, though ultimately met with a lower-level executive.
Thabi Nyide, associate director of corporate affairs in Pfizer‘s Johannesburg office, said Monday that the lobbying was "probably part of a stream of events that led to this and not the only factor."
"With or without the demonstration, I‘m sure we would have done something," she said. "This is a response to an unmet medical need in the country."
Nyide said she did not know how much the offer would cost the company. Details were still being discussed, and it was not yet certain how the process of supplying the drug would work, she said.
Pfizer‘s offer sparked hopes among activists that other pharmaceutical companies would follow suit and offer HIV and AIDS-related drugs at a discount or free. One in 10 South Africans - 4 million - are believed to have HIV or AIDS.
The Treatment Action Campaign also is lobbying other pharmaceutical firms to reduce prices of other HIV and AIDS-related drugs. The campaign has new hope now that Pfizer has decided to provide Diflucan free, Achmat said.
The group is asking Glaxo Wellcome PLC, the maker of AZT, to make that drug available free to reduce the risk of mother-to-infant transmission. But the British firm had no plans to offer AZT free, said Ben Plumley, head of Glaxo‘s external relations.
"Donations only make sense in short-term interventions and the problem with HIV is that it is a chronic disease," he said, adding that Glaxo typically offers AZT on a steep discount to patients in developing nations.
In South Africa, the discount is 75 percent, meaning Glaxo charges $2 instead of $8 for a daily dose, he said. The firm is negotiating with the South African government to buy AZT.
Glaxo already gives away AZT to the relief organization UNICEF, which makes the pills available to people in developing countries, he said.
The drug, Diflucan, treats cryptococcal meningitis, a lethal brain infection that occurs in nearly one out of 10 HIV-patients.
In South Africa, the daily dose of Diflucan costs about $15, far more than the country‘s many poor can afford. Those with the infection must take medication for the rest of their lives.
The HIV and AIDS Treatment Action Campaign, an advocacy group, had lobbied the New York-based Pfizer for a year to reduce the drug‘s price, said volunteer coordinator Midi Achmat. Last month, a group of protesters broke into Pfizer‘s New York headquarters to demand a meeting with Chairman William Steere, though ultimately met with a lower-level executive.
Thabi Nyide, associate director of corporate affairs in Pfizer‘s Johannesburg office, said Monday that the lobbying was "probably part of a stream of events that led to this and not the only factor."
"With or without the demonstration, I‘m sure we would have done something," she said. "This is a response to an unmet medical need in the country."
Nyide said she did not know how much the offer would cost the company. Details were still being discussed, and it was not yet certain how the process of supplying the drug would work, she said.
Pfizer‘s offer sparked hopes among activists that other pharmaceutical companies would follow suit and offer HIV and AIDS-related drugs at a discount or free. One in 10 South Africans - 4 million - are believed to have HIV or AIDS.
The Treatment Action Campaign also is lobbying other pharmaceutical firms to reduce prices of other HIV and AIDS-related drugs. The campaign has new hope now that Pfizer has decided to provide Diflucan free, Achmat said.
The group is asking Glaxo Wellcome PLC, the maker of AZT, to make that drug available free to reduce the risk of mother-to-infant transmission. But the British firm had no plans to offer AZT free, said Ben Plumley, head of Glaxo‘s external relations.
"Donations only make sense in short-term interventions and the problem with HIV is that it is a chronic disease," he said, adding that Glaxo typically offers AZT on a steep discount to patients in developing nations.
In South Africa, the discount is 75 percent, meaning Glaxo charges $2 instead of $8 for a daily dose, he said. The firm is negotiating with the South African government to buy AZT.
Glaxo already gives away AZT to the relief organization UNICEF, which makes the pills available to people in developing countries, he said.