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Press room ... 2000 archive
Fair Price Working Group Consensus Statement
on the Pricing of EC ddI and ABT-378
March 10, 2000
San Francisco, CA—We, the undersigned, have
serious concerns regarding the growing costs of therapy for HIV
disease. While we are heartened by the progress made in moving toward
simpler, easier to use regimens, we are dismayed by the possibility
that prices of new drugs and price increases of approved drugs are
escalating ever higher, and with each new price increase setting
new benchmarks. As drugs become available which might facilitate
better adherence and possibly more durable long-term treatment,
manufacturers should be planning to lower or at least contain the
daily cost of their regimens, not increase them. The long-term survival
afforded by the present generation of therapies makes it possible
for manufacturers to set lower, or at least stable prices, and still
have adequate incentive to reinvest in continued development of
HIV/AIDS drugs.
Recently cited reductions in the overall cost of health care for
HIV infected people will almost certainly be reversed in coming
years if manufacturers continue to increase or maintain current
pricing levels. We are in a new era in the treatment of HIV disease
and rethinking drug pricing which reflects this changing reality
is long overdue.
To the best of our knowledge, the development costs of Bristol
Myers Squibb new enteric-coated formulation of ddI and Abbott Labs'
new protease inhibitor, Kaletra™ (lopinavir), do not justify
a leap in prices. There has been nothing extraordinary about the
cost of clinical trials required to bring these new formulations
and drugs to market, while the duration of their use by patients
may be greatly extended.
Enteric coated ddl is likely to be used by both treatment- naïve
and treatment-experienced patient populations, making its potential
market very large. The tolerability profile of the earlier versions
of this drug has long suppressed its sales, resulting in pent-up
demand for an effective nucleoside analogue drug. If the price is
as high as current indications suggest, and the drug is used in
naïve populations in place of existing drugs, the overall cost
of therapy will go up substantially. Similarly, if the price of
lopinavir reaches new heights for a protease inhibitor and it is
used by both treatment-naïve and treatment-experienced people,
the overall cost of therapy will escalate dramatically. We cannot
stand idly by while the price of living with HIV disease rises so
rapidly. ADAP programs and other forms of government funding support
have limited amounts of money allocated to them each year. Moreover,
the long-term use of extremely expensive drugs is threatening the
lifetime limits of many private insurance policies.
Some state ADAP and Medicaid programs have removed vital medications
to prevent and treat opportunistic infections from their formularies.
State ADAP and Medicaid programs are under close scrutiny by governmental
panels in order to cut costs. The price of one drug can affect the
availability of other medications. Increasingly, this same sad scenario
is beginning to affect the availability of drugs within HMO settings.
The price of these drugs will have a pervasive impact on the overall
quality of care people with HIV/AIDS receive in this country.
Bristol Myers Squibb and Abbott Labs have expressed a strong desire
to create goodwill and cooperative working relationships with the
community. No one wants to see those relationships jeopardized over
this issue, but that surely occur if pricing is inappropriate. Exploitative
pricing will trigger widespread mistrust, contentious debate, and
closer scrutiny of industry practices in general and give comfort
to those who think that AIDS is simply a scam designed to line the
coffers of the pharmaceutical industry. This will have far reaching
consequences.
Though we call for a major reduction in the price of HIV therapies
in general, these drugs must at least be priced fairly and in accordance
with other drugs of their respective classes. Neither represents
a major advance in therapy that might otherwise reduce the overall
cost of care. We urge manufacturers to rethink their plans for pricing
and to act as responsible citizens playing a key role in the fight
against a worldwide epidemic. Without responsible pricing, there
can be no constructive dialogue between industry and the HIV affected
populations worldwide.
Fair Price Working Group
- Bill Arnold, Title II Community AIDS National Network, Inc.
- Ben Cheng, Assoc. Dir. Information & Advocacy, Project Inform
- Lynda Dee, President, AIDS Action Baltimore
- Martin Delaney, Founding Director, Project Inform
- Yvette Delph, Antiviral Policy Director, Treatment Action Group
- Ken Fornataro, Exec. Dir., AIDS Treatment Data Network
- Dave Gilden, Director of Treatment Information, AmFAR
- Linda Grinberg, President, FAIR/Foundation for AIDS & Immune
Research
- Mark Harrington, Senior Policy Director, Treatment Action Group
- Carlton Hogan, University of Minnesota
- Richard Jeffreys, Access Project Director, AIDS Treatment &
Data Network
- Michael Marco, Director, Infections and Oncology, Treatment
Action Group
Organization & Individual Endorsements
Organizations:
- ABIA (Associação Brasileira Iterdisciplinar de
AIDS) São Paulo, BRAZIL
- ACT UP/Cleveland, Cleveland, OH
- ACT UP/East Bay, Oakland, CA
- ACT UP/Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
- ACT UP/Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA
- ACT/UP New York, New York, NY
- AGIHAS, Riga, LATVIA
- Agua Buena Human Rights Association, Costa Rica
- Aid for AIDS, New York, NY
- AIDS Action Baltimore, Baltimore, MD
- AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT), Toronto, ON CANADA
- AIDS Survival Project, Atlanta, GA
- AIDS Treatment & Data Network, New York, NY
- AIDS Treatment News, San Francisco, CA
- Asian & Pacific Islander Wellness Center: Community HIV
Services, San Francisco, CA
- Asociación Gente Positiva, Guatemala City, GUATEMALA
- Atlanta Hispanic PLWA Group, Atlanta, GA
- Aunt Bee's Project Return
- Australian Federation of AIDS Organisations (AFAO), AU
- British Columbia Persons with AIDS, Vancouver, BC
- C-WOW, The Center With Out Walls, Trauma Integration Advantage
Program, Columbus, OH
- Canadian Treatment Advocates Council, Toronto, ON CANADA
- Center for AIDS, Houston, TX
- Chicago ACTG, Northwestern Medical Center, Chicago, IL
- Colombian Lesbian and Gay Association (COLEGA), New York, NY
- Community Prescription Service, New York, NY
- DAAIR, New York, NY
- Deutsche AIDS-Hilfe, Berlin, GERMANY
- FLAAC/Florida AIDS Action Council, Miami, Florida
- Foundation for AIDS and Immune Research, Los Angeles, CA
- Gay Men's Health Crisis, New York, NY
- German Activists Network, GERMANY
- GIV (Grupo de Incentivo à Vida) Rio de Janeiro, BRAZIL
- Haitian Centers Council, Brooklyn, NY 11201
- Hawaii Adult Aids Clinical Trials Unit - University of Hawaii,
Hawaii
- Hawaii Drug Assistance Program, Hawaii
- Hawaii Sero-Positive&Medical Management Program, Hawaii
- Hawaii C.A.R.E.S - Ryan White Title II Planning Group, Hawaii
- Health Initiatives for Youth, San Francisco, CA
- Hepatitis C Action & Advocacy Coalition (HAAC) New York,
NY
- Hepatitis C Action & Advocacy Coalition (HAAC) San Francisco,
CA
- HIV in Prison Committee of California Prison Focus, San Francisco,
CA
- HIVCare at St. Francis Memorial Hospital, San Francisco, CA
- Holistic Health Center, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
- Latino Commission on AIDS, New York, NY
- Lighthouse Group, Asheville, NC
- Loving Food Resources, Inc, Asheville, NC
- Mano a Mano, New York, NY
- Nashville CARES, Nashville TN
- NATAP (National AIDS Treatment Advocacy Project) New York, NY
- New York City AIDS Housing Network, New York, NY
- New York Peer AIDS Education Coalition, New York, NY
- North Carolina AIDS Policy Center, Asheville, NC
- North Coast HIV/AIDS Coalition, Cleveland, OH
- OASIS (Organización de Apoyo a una Sexualidad Integral
frente al SIDA) Guatemala City, GUATEMALA
- Other Options, Inc., Oklahoma City, OK
- Pioneer Valley Hepatitis C Action Project (PVHepCAP) of Western
Massachusetts, MA
- Positive Peaches, Inc., Conyers, GA
- Positives For Positives, Cheyenne, WY
- POZ Magazine, New York, NY
- Prisoners With AIDS - Rights Advocacy Group, Los Angeles, CA
- Project Inform, San Francisco, CA
- PWA Health Group, New York, NY
- PWACMI/PWA Committee of Maryland, Inc. Frederick, Maryland
- San Francisco AIDS Foundation, San Francisco, CA
- Search for a Cure, Boston, MA
- Sisters of St. Elizabeth of Hungary, San Juan Capistrano, CA
- Survive AIDS (formerly ACT UP Golden Gate), Francisco, CA
- Treatment Action Group, New York, NY
- Washington Dept. of Health HIV Early Intervention Program, Steering
Committee, WA
- Washington State ADAP Program, WA
Individuals:
- Judith A. Aberg, M.D., Director of HIV Services, Washington
University, AIDS Clinical Trials Unit, St Louis, MO
- Carol Adamovicz, North Royalton, OH
- Moises Agosto, New York, NY
- Doug Allen, writer for POZ and other publications, New York
City, NY
- Averil D.(Cookie) Arbuckle, Director, Other Options, Inc. (ASO)
OK
- Bill Arnold, Title II Community AIDS National Network, Inc.,
Washington, DC
- Götz Bähr, Berliner AIDS-Hilfe e.V, Berlin, GERMANY
- David Balsam, Agua Buena Human Rights Association, Costa Rica
- Irl Barefield, Director, HIVCare at St. Francis Memorial Hospital,
San Francisco, CA
- Charles R. Belt, MD, HIV Clinic Board Staff Physician, Univ.
of Arkansas, Fayetteville Student Health Services, Fayetteville,
AK
- Jorge Beloqui GIV, São Paulo and ABIA, Rio de Janeiro,
Brazil
- Jeanne Bergman, Ph.D., New York, NY
- Thomas Blount, Miami Beach, FL
- Sally Brookins, Southern Colorado AIDS Project, Colorado Springs,
CO
- James M. Carr, Director, HIV Consumer Association of Indiana,
IN
- George Carter, San Francisco, CA
- George M. Carter, Director, Treatment Info. Development, DAAIR,
New York, NY
- Peter Cashman, ACT UP/LA, Los Angeles, CA
- Matthew Chappell, MSW, Survive AIDS, San Francisco, CA
- Ben Cheng, Assoc. Director Information & Advocacy, Project
Inform, San Francisco, CA
- Nicholas Cheonis, San Francisco AIDS Foundation, San Francisco,
CA
- Erickson Chiclayo, Executive Director, Asociación Gente
Positiva, Guatemala City, GUATEMALA
- Danny Cohen, San Francisco CA
- Evan Collins, MD, FRCPC, Chair, Advocacy Committee, AIDS Committee
of Toronto and Assistant Professor, University of Toronto, Toronto,
ON, CANADA
- LinDee Cook, Director of Programs on Aging, C-WOW, The Center
Without Walls, Columbus, OH
- Jim Corti, Foundation for AIDS & Immune Research, Bangkok,
THAILAND
- Daniel G. Craig, Staten Island, NY
- Myron C. Crider, Morrow, GA
- Anna J. Cushman, Kalamazoo, MI
- Dee Danna, San Jose, CA
- Paul Davis, ACT UP Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA
- Anne S. De Groot MD, TB/HIV Research Lab, HIV Education/Prison
Project at the Brown AIDS Program, http://www.Brown.edu/Research/TB-HIV-Lab,
http://www.Brown.edu/Research/Vaccine-Center, Providence Rhode
Island
- Anne S. De Groot, MD, Lynda Dee, President, AIDS Action Baltimore,
MD
- Martin Delaney, Founding Director, Project Inform, San Francisco,
CA
- Yvette Delph, Antiviral Policy Director, Treatment Action Group
- Sharon Dolan, Executive Director, Health Initiatives for Youth,
San Francisco, CA
- Anne Donnelly, Director, Public Policy, Project Inform, San
Francisco, CA
- Andres Duque, Director of the LGBT Initiative, Latino Commission
on AIDS, Coordinator Mano a Mano, Co-chair, Colombian Lesbian
and Gay Association (COLEGA) New York, NY
- Steve Dutky, Takoma Park, MD
- Paul Edmonds, Truckee, CA
- Bruce Edwards, MPH, Correctional HIV Consortium, San Francisco,
CA
- Isabella Erlich, HIV-Coordinator, AIDS-Hilfe Stuttgart e.V.
Stuttgart, GERMANY
- Jim Eigo, New York, NY
- Sister Mary Elizabeth, OSM, AEGIS, San Juan Capistrano, CA
- Richard Elliott, Director, Policy & Research, Canadian HIV/AIDS
Legal Network
- Francisco M.P.Faria, xicofaria@hotmail.com, PORTUGAL
- Vanessa Filley, San Francisco, CA
- Leonard Fisher, North Vernon, Indiana
- Peter Fisher Co-chair, Pioneer Valley Hepatitis C Action Project
(PVHepCAP) of Western Massachusetts, MA
- Jennifer Flynn, Executive Director, New York City AIDS Housing
Network, New York, NY
- Robert Folan-Johnson, ACT UP Boston, Boston, MA
- Ken Fornataro, Executive Director, AIDS Treatment Data Network
- Kevin Fox, Volunteer/Project Inform/Positive Resource, San Francisco,
CA
- Urszula Frydman, Oakland, CA
- Marilyn Ganns, RN, BSN, ACRN, OCN, St. Lukes Hospital, Kansas
City, MO
- Roger Garza, Atlanta Hispanic PLWA Group, Atlanta, GA
- Stephen Gendin, CEO, Community Prescription Service
- Jeff Getty, Survive AIDS, San Francisco, CA
- Dave Gilden, Director of Treatment Information, AmFAR, New York,
NY
- Gregg Gonsalves, Policy Director, Treatment Action Group, New
York, NY
- Jeff Graham, Executive Director, AIDS Survival Project, Atlanta,
GA
- Judy Greenspan, Chairperson, California Prison Focus, HIV in
Prison Committee/CPF, San Francisco, CA
- Linda Grinberg, President, FAIR/Foundation for AIDS & Immune
Research
- Howard Grossman, M.D., Community Physician, New York, NY
- Tony Grove, Brisbane, AUSTRALIA
- Mark Grzebien, Laurel, MD
- Rich Grzesiak, Web Master, Being Alive Los Angeles, Axion Grafix,
Silver Lake, CA
- Jeff Gustavson, Survive AIDS!, San Francisco, CA
- Greg Hacke, Consumer Representative, HIV/AIDS Nursing Certification
Board
- Michael Haggerty, San Diego, CA
- Marie Hamilton, LCSW, Chicago, IL
- Alec Hardy, Prisoners With AIDS - Rights Advocacy Group, Los
Angeles, CA
- Mark Harrington, Senior Policy Director, Treatment Action Group
- Tom Hemmingsen, Member, Chicago Adult ACTG CAB, Chicago, IL
- Steve Hendrix, ruedog@saturnnet.com
- Dr. Götz Hiller (BAH)
- Carlton Hogan, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
- Tim Horn, Physicians' Research Network, New York, NY
- Arnold House, Truckee, CA
- Valerie Huston, HIV Counseling & Testing Program, The Aliveness
Project of Northwest Indiana, Gary, INDIANA
- T. Michael Hyde , Washington, DC
- Joseph Interrante, Executive Director, Nashville CARES, Nashville
TN
- John Iversen, HIV Services Planning Council, Oakland, CA
- Richard Jackman, Member, RESIST THE LIST, Seattle, WA 72. Miki
Jackson,Founding President, Aunt Bee's Project Return
- John S. James, AIDS Treatment News, San Francisco, CA
- Richard Jeffreys, Access Project Director, AIDS Treatment &
Data Network, NY
- Lisa Jensen, Bar Association of S.F.,Oakland, CA
- Michael Jones, Community Consortium of San Francisco, San Francisco,
CA
- Carol Katz, RN, CS-ANP, Channel 1
- Michael Kinsley, San Francisco, CA
- Brian D. Klein, MA, LMSW, Hepatitis C Action & Advocacy
Coalition (HAAC-SF), San Francisco, CA
- Stephen Kovacev, Board member Provincetown Positive People with
Aids Coalition, Provincetown, MA
- Lark Lands, POZ Magazine Science Editor, Georgetown, CO
- Paul Langlotz, Los Angeles, CA
- Garrett Lanzy, Endicott, NY
- James Learned, CRIA, New York , NY
- Bob Lederer, ACT UP/New York, New York, NY
- Brenda Lein, Director, Information and Advocacy Depts., Project
Inform, San Francisco, CA
- Steve Lems, Wyoming, MI
- Joel Nim Cho Leung, Secretary, British Columbia Persons with
AIDS, Vancouver, BC, CANADA
- Jules Levin, Executive Director, NATAP (Nat'l. AIDS Treatment
Advocacy Project) NY
- Michael E. Linhart, Prison Outreach Coordinator, BC Persons
with AIDS Society, Member, Board of Directors, Canadian HIV/AIDS
Legal Network
- Kathy Loucks, Inland Northwest AIDS Coalition, Spokane, WA
- Basil Lucas, NYC Lesbian and Gay Anti Violence Project, NYC,
NY
- John Manzon-Santos, Executive Director, Asian & Pacific
Islander Wellness Center Community HIV Services, San Francisco,
CA
- Michael Marco, Director, Infections and Oncology Project, Treatment
Action Group
- Oliver W. Martin III., Deputy Director, Conscious Contact of
New York, Inc., NY
- Rubén Mayorga, MD. Executive Director, OASIS (Organización
de Apoyo a un Sexualidad Integral frente al SIDA), Guatemala City,
GUATEMALA
- Bob McCormick, Director, HIV Department, Lowell Community Health
Center, Lowell, MA
- Bill McMahon, Volunteer, Northern Territory AIDS Council, Nightcliff,
Australia
- Mark Milano, ACT UP New York, New York, NY
- Jacki Miller, MA, MS, Case Management/Consortium Coordinator,
Lansing, MI
- Bob Mills, CTAC Alberta Repres., HIV Edmonton Bd. & Advocacy
Committee Chair, Project Review Committee CWGHR, Canadian HIV/AIDS
Legal Network, Alberta, BC
- Michael Mooney, Director of Research, Program For Wellness Restoration,
Los Angeles, CA
- Robert J. Munk, PhD, Arroyo Seco, New Mexico
- James Musslewhite, Washington Dept. of Health HIV Early Intervention
Program, Olympia, WA
- Meg D. Newman, M.D., UCSF Assistant Professor of Medicine, SFG
Ward 84, Director, AIDS Education at the UCSF-Positive Health
Program at SFGH, UCSF Internal Medicine Residency Site Director
at SFGH, San Francisco, CA,
- Kevin P. Nuttall, Policy Analyst/Advisor, N. Carolina AIDS Policy
Center, Asheville, NC
- Russel Ogelesby, Amethyst Project, Inc., Statesboro, GA
- Jeff Palmer, Positives For Positives, Cheyenne, WY
- Roscoe E. Parker, WNC HIV/Aids Consortium, Asheville, NC
- June Pease, Co-chair, Pioneer Valley Hepatitis C Action Project
(PVHepCAP) of Western Massachusetts, MA
- Stuart Peller, Managing Director, Holistic Health Center, Ft.
Lauderdale, FL
- Billy Pick, San Francisco, CA
- Marie Pierre-Louis, Haitian Centers Council, Brooklyn, NY
- Curtis Ponzi, J.D., Project Inform/County Consortium Institutional
Review Board, San Francisco, CA
- Andy Quan, Int'l. Policy Officer, Australian Federation of AIDS
Organisations (AFAO), AU
- Myron Dean Quon, Esq., Lambda Legal Defense & Education
Fund, San Francisco, CA
- Claire Rappoport, PWA, Brisbane, CA
- Tim Read, Melbourne, Australia
- Scott Riddle, Artistic Director, Center With Out Walls, Columbus,
OH
- Esther Robison, Ph.D., Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, NY
- Michelle Roland, MD, UCSF Positive Health Program, San Francisco
General Hospital, San Francisco, CA
- Brad Roter, Co-Chairs, Washington ADAP Program, WA
- William W. Rydwels, National Association of HIV+s Over Fifty,
Chicago, IL
- Kathy Ryerson, Democrat, San Francisco, CA
- Michael S. Saag, MD, Professor of Medicine, Director, AIDS Outpatient
Clinic, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL
- J.V. Schlichter, Orlando, FL
- Jeffrey T. Schouten, MD, Attorney at Law, Seattle Treatment
Education Project (STEP) Seattle, WA
- David Scondras, former City Councilor, Search for a Cure, Boston,
MA
- Stephanie Schwartzbeck- Founder/Executive Director, PWACMI/PWA
Committee of Maryland, Inc. Frederick, Maryland
- Mardie Serenity, Programme Director, Canadian Treatment Advocates
Council, Toronto, ONTARIO, CANADA
- Jack P. Shallow, Hayward, CA
- Iveta Skripste, Project Manager, Riga, LATVIA
- Theo Smart, Director of Treatment & Prevention Advocacy
and Editor, Treatment Issues, GMHC/Gay Mens' Health Crisis, New
York, NY
- Matthew Sharp, Survive AIDS, San Francisco, CA
- J. Nathan Sherlock, M.D., Bloomington, IN
- Paul Simmons, RN, ACRN, Director of Treatment Information &
Advocacy, Center for AIDS, Houston, TX
- Wendy Simmons, Asst. Director, Center With Out Walls, Columbus,
OH
- Clint Spencer, Chair, CAB Hawaii Drug Assistance Program, Hawaii
Sero-Positive & Medical Mgmt. Program, Hawaii Adult Aids Clinical
Trials Unit, University of Hawaii, Hawaii C.A.R.E.S - Ryan White
Title II Planning Group
- Bill Sprick, Board of Directors, Project Inform, San Francisco,
CA
- Kenneth Stailey, Takoma Park, MD
- Richard Stern, Director, Agua Buena Human Rights Association,
San José, COSTA RICA
- Victoria Stern, Columbia Science Honors Program and Spence School,
New York, NY
- Suzanne Stoughton, RN, Ryan White Planning Council, Portland,
OR
- Betsy Stubblefield, Assoc. Editor, Prison Project Newsletter,
HEPP News, Brown University, Providence, RI
- Tracy Swan, Cambridge Health Alliance, Cambridge, MA
- Tim Teeter, RN, Assoc. Director, Treatment Support and Publications,
San Francisco AIDS Foundation, San Francisco, CA
- Yolanda Teschner, Gloucester, VA
- Lilian Thiemann, CPS/PWA Health Group, New York, NY
- Dave Thomas, Chair, Chicago ACTG, Northwestern Medical Center,
Chicago, IL
- Brenda Thorpe, Dallas, GA
- Jim Thorpe, Acworth, GA
- Michelle Thorpe, Acworth, GA
- Thomas Thorpe, Dallas, GA
- Enid Vasquez, Test Positive Aware, Chicago, IL
- Bernd Vielhaber, Editor, FaxReport (Germany), Editor HIV/AIDS
Behandlung Aktiv, AUSTRIA, and German Activists Network, Berlin,
GERMANY
- William E. Wade, DO, MPH - Family Medicine and Counseling, St.
Louis, MO
- Steve Wakefield, Seattle, WA
- Tom Warne, University of Chicago, Pritzker School of Medicine,
Chicago, IL
- Raleigh Watts, Co-Chair, Washington ADAP Program, WA 73. Gundo
Weiler, Deutsche AIDS-Hilfe, Berlin, GERMANY
- Robert White, St. Louis, MO
- Brooke Willis, Special Events Chair, ACT UP Cleveland and North
Coast HIV/AIDS Coalition, Cleveland, OH
- Hank Wilson, Survive AIDS, San Francisco, CA
- Ulrich Wuerdemann, Editor, HIV Nachrichten, Cologne, GERMANY
- Joey Wynn, FLAAC/Florida AIDS Action Council, Miami, Florida
- Engelbert Zankl, HIV-Therapie-Hotline, Munich, GERMANY
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