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HIV drugs will be made available to people in the poorest countries
Last reviewed: 30.06.2025
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Former US President Bill Clinton announced an agreement with Indian pharmaceutical companies to set the minimum cost of therapy for HIV-infected residents of the world's poorest countries at around $200 a year.
Former US President Bill Clinton has reached an agreement with nine major Indian pharmaceutical companies to reduce prices on HIV/AIDS drugs for developing countries.
Under the agreement, combination therapy drugs for drug-resistant forms of HIV infection (atazanavir, ritonavir, tenofovir, efavirenz, tazanavir) will be supplied to the poorest regions of the world at a price of $200 per course.
Despite ongoing efforts to improve HIV/AIDS treatment in the world's poorest regions, many patients in Africa, for example, are still receiving outdated drugs (nevirapine) that cause severe side effects such as liver necrosis.
Availability of first- and second-line antiretroviral drugs will enable patients suffering from HIV/AIDS to take medications for life, the former US President emphasized. The project, primarily the expansion of drug production in India, will be financed by Unitaid, an independent fund under the UN.
In 2002, Bill Clinton founded the Clinton HIV/AIDS Initiative, whose primary goal is to provide access to antiretroviral therapy for people in the poorest countries. According to Clinton, his foundation's efforts have helped more than two million patients worldwide gain access to life-saving drugs to treat HIV infection.
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