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Clinton eyes second-line ARVs

    JOHANNESBURG

    Former US president Bill Clinton said on Friday that he hoped to negotiate lower prices for second-line antiretroviral (ARV) drugs by the end of 2006.

    The Clinton Foundation took the lead in the fight for low-cost first-line drugs in 2003 by getting pharmaceutical giants to agree to lower rates on their raw materials for generic manufacturers.

    However, the prices of second-line drugs still remained prohibitive. South Africa's Business Day newspaper quoted Clinton as saying, "It's quite difficult for us to get close to the price of the first-line drugs ... but we have gotten steep discounts [on two second-line drugs], and I think we will have the full complement by the end of the year."

    Patients usually begin treatment with three first-line drugs, but if they develop severe side effects or resistance to these, they need to switch to more expensive second-line medication.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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