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In an effort to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS and hepatitis in developing countries, a US-based medical service provider has dropped the price of specially designed syringes that are impossible to use more than once.
Becton Dickinson and Company said it was willing to provide the auto-disable syringes that lock after being used only once for about 5 cents each.
Research shows that second to unsafe sex, injections administered with used needles have become the second leading cause of HIV/AIDS and hepatitis in developing nations.
The president of Becton Dickinson's medical systems, Gary Cohen, told Reuters in a recent interview: "We could be selling these for more but, recognising where they're going, we intentionally brought the price down."
To fund the single-use needle programme, Cohen said the company had lobbied for a fraction of US President George W Bush's US $15 billion global AIDS pledge, but would push ahead even if the US congress was not forthcoming.
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
