PLoS study examines ARV supply in Africa

The Public Library of Science has published a study of the supply of antiretroviral drugs to sub-Saharan Africa, noting that significant quantities of the drugs are being made available in the region for the first time in the 20-year existence of the medications. The aim of the research was to compare the availability of generic and branded drugs in the area.

According to the PLoS, an observational study of the various products available in sub-Saharan Africa found that 96% of the 2,162 ARV drug orders recorded was for first-line treatments, which were dominated by generics, and 4% of second-line treatments, most of which were branded. From data provided by the World Health Organization's Global Price Reporting Mechanism from January 2004 to March 2006, the study's authors found that about 85% of the generics were from India-sourced drugs and the remainder was from South Africa, mostly under voluntary licensing schemes.

The PLoS study by Colleen Chien, of the Stanford Center for Law and the Biosciences, found that a combination of sources and a mixture of voluntary and compulsory licensing was effective at generating ARV supply in the poorest African countries, although the price differential between branded and generic products was still about three to one.