A United States drug manufacturer has taken an important step to open the way to improved access to the treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) across Africa.
Johnson & Johnson announced on September 29 that it will no longer enforce patents for the drug bedaquiline, which it sells as SIRTURO, in 134 low- and middle-income countries. Its announcement frees companies making generic versions of the drug to manufacture them at lower prices without fear of being sued for doing so.
The announcement has been hailed by the humanitarian medical care NGO, Médecins Sans Frontières, as a "huge success" resulting from campaigns by TB activists, civil society and countries which "prioritise public health over corporations' interests."
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: Breakthrough Promises Improved Access to TB Treatment in Africa){kind=link}
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