AIDS expert warns against patent breaking

Mixed news has come out of the AIDS Society conference in Sydney, Australia. One of the claims being made is by French immunologist Michel Kazatchkine against governments that break patents in order to provide inexpensive generic medicine. Kazatchkine- an expert on the matter- warned that combating AIDS is affordable even in undeveloped countries:

"Don't tell me this is unaffordable. Yes, everyone needs to put more money on the table, but the message is we should be able to win the battle."

One of the leading governments pushing towards generic drugs has been Brazil where the government provides free anti-AIDS treatment for its people. In April the government broke the patent for an antiretroviral drug made by Merck, while earlier this month a deal was reached to provide a discounted anti-AIDS drug.

Yet in June Roche Pharmaceuticals recalled several tainted batches of one antiretroviral drug; its effects were felt around the world including in Venezuela where several thousand people had been without medicine.

Last week we mentioned the worry over increased AIDS cases in Mexico due to migrants crossing the border from the U.S.

Sources- Sydney Morning Herald, The Latin Americanist, International Herald Tribune, BBC News

Image- IADB