Patricia Watson, Senior Staff Reporter
JAMAICANS living with HIV/AIDS may soon have access to comprehensive care, including treatment and support, if the Government is successful in getting pharmaceuticals to significantly lower the price of antiretrovirals.
Antiretrovirals are drugs used to treat HIV/AIDS.
"As you know, one of the main barriers for wider access to care and support is the price of drugs," Dr. Badara Samb, World Health Organisation (WHO) Global Co-ordinator "Accelerating Access" told The Sunday Gleaner last week.
Dr. Samb was part of a WHO-led team which held discussions with Ministry of Health personnel and other stakeholders under the United Nations-sponsored Accelerating Access Initiative (AAI).
The AAI is an attempt by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) to assist developing countries implement comprehensive packages of care for their citizens living with HIV/AIDS. The initiative includes UNAIDS' advocacy and policy guidance on HIV care at the global level and also involves "fast track" support for developing countries who indicate a wish to significantly expand access to HIV care, support and treatment, and who want assistance from UNAIDS.
In addition, UNAIDS would provide a basic package of care (including voluntary counselling and testing and psycho-social support) to the countries.
Jamaica is among 76 countries which have sought help under the initiative.
"When the Jamaican Minister of Health heard about this (AAI), he wrote to the UN systems and asked for assistance. Since in the UN systems, PAHO and WHO are the implementing agencies of such programmes, we led a mission involving UNAIDS and CARICOM, with the objective of assisting the (Jamaican) Government to develop a plan of action and use this plan of action as a negotiation tool with the Pharmaceutical companies for the reduction of prices," Dr. Samb said.
He explained that a triple therapy cocktail costs US$12,000 per year, a price which most people living with HIV in developing countries cannot afford.
"This triple therapy can save lives and give good quality of life to people living with HIV, but because of their price they are just not affordable to people living with HIV in developing countries and in Jamaica.
That is why the UN Secretary General, Kofi Anan initiated discussions between the UN system and five pharmaceutical companies. The concept being that these companies would tailor the prices of their drugs to the socio-economic characteristics of each country."
To date, Dr. Samb noted that instead of US$12,000 per year for triple therapy in Uganda for instance, under the initiative, the cost fell to US$5,004.
"This is a significant reduction though still high, but to start with, it is still something. We hope that with this mission we will be having a solid plan of action, for advocacy purposes as well as for a negotiation tool with the pharmaceutical companies to reduce the prices to make the drugs more accessible to the Jamaican people, Dr. Samb noted.
Although Jamaica has not started any official negotiation with the pharmaceutical companies, about three companies have already reduced the cost of some of the antiretroviral drugs. But according to director of the HIV/STI programme at the Ministry of Health, Dr. Yitades Gebre, "we need more reduction to make a significant contribution in this respect."
He said that a significant reduction in the price of the drugs is expected.
Dr. Gebre told The Sunday Gleaner on Friday, that a treatment action plan is being developed and will be presented to senior officers in the Ministry later next week. He also revealed that Government has already taken steps to expand the care programme for persons living with HIV. This has been a sore point for people living with HIV, who complained that little attention was being paid to their plight.
"Four regional treatment centres will be available by the end of this year. The sites will include counsellors, nutritionists and social workers. This programme has been approved by the Government through the World Bank financed HIV/AIDS project," Dr. Gebre said.
