Médecins Sans Frontières

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- With Johnson and Johnson (J&J) recently granting permission to Stop TB Partnership to distribute its generic TB drug bedaquiline (SIRTURO) to the majority of low- and middle-income countries, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) applauds Stop TB Partnership and the TB community overall for their strong leadership and advocacy in inking this vital agreement. While the deal is a positive step, AHF agrees with advocates, including Médecins Sans Frontières and others, that this is a short-term solution and urges J&J to do more for other lower-income countries that still lack access. “Tuberculosis kills 1.6 million people annually and remains the leading cause of death for people living with HIV. We are glad to see steps in the right direction with the licensing agreement between J&J and Stop TB Partnership and hope the pharma giant continues to set a positive example for other drug manufacturers to follow for improved access to intellectual property to produce more affordable generic medicines,” said Terri Ford, Chief of Global Advocacy and Policy at AHF. “That said, this doesn’t let J&J off the hook for its past profiteering with its COVID-19 vaccine and other drugs. It shouldn’t take a massive advocacy campaign by civil society organizations for pharmaceutical companies to put lives before profit.” While AHF is cautiously optimistic, details of this agreement must be made public. It is being reported that countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, which have some of the world’s highest burden of drug-resistant TB, are left out of the deal. AHF urges J&J to grant unfettered access to all countries that need this lifesaving medicine. About AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) AIDS Healthcare Foundation, the largest global AIDS organization, currently provides medical care and/or services to over 1.7 million people in 45 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean, the Asia/Pacific Region and Europe. To learn more about AHF, please visit our website: , find us on Facebook: and follow us on Twitter: @aidshealthcare and Instagram: @aidshealthcare. View source version on businesswire.com: Contacts Ged Kenslea, Senior Director Communications, AHF +1.323.308.1833 work +1.323.791.5526 mobile gedk@aidshealth.org Denys Nazarov, Director of Global Policy & Communications, AHF +1 323.308.1829 denys.nazarov@aidshealth.org Source: AIDS Healthcare Foundation View this news release online at:

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) supports an appeal by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) urging Abbott Laboratories and Becton Dickinson (BD) to continue production of equipment and consumables for point-of-care (POC) CD4 machines. Both companies have announced that they will phase out the production of cartridges and devices over the coming years, including Abbott’s Pima CD4 analyzers, which AHF widely uses around the world. “We fully support MSF’s position on this issue. POC CD4 machines are vital to patient care, especially because we are seeing an increase in HIV late presenters across AHF facilities, including people with advanced AIDS; in such cases, baseline CD4 is essential, and if it is available at POC, it is even more effective. The WHO needs to emphasize this fact!” said AHF Senior Global Medical Director Dr. Adele Schwartz Benzaken. “COVID-19 disrupted HIV testing and delayed treatment initiation for HIV positive people. Rapid CD4 testing saves lives by getting people into treatment for opportunistic infections. We urge Abbott and BD not to abandon patients and medical providers who rely on this technology every day.” About AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) AIDS Healthcare Foundation, the largest global AIDS organization, currently provides medical care and/or services to over 1.7 million people in 45 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean, the Asia/Pacific Region and Europe. To learn more about AHF, please visit our website: , find us on Facebook: and follow us on Twitter: @aidshealthcare and Instagram: @aidshealthcare. View source version on businesswire.com: Contacts US MEDIA CONTACT: Ged Kenslea, Senior Director, Communications, AHF +1 323 308 1833 work +1.323.791.5526 mobile gedk@aidshealth.org Denys Nazarov, Director of Global Policy & Communications, AHF +1 323.308.1829 denys.nazarov@aidshealth.org Source: AIDS Healthcare Foundation View this news release online at: