In addition to accomplishing humanitarian objectives by offering the sale of low-priced generic copies of AIDS drugs, Cipla owner Yusuf K. Hamied may have been motivated by a desire to establish his company's name outside India and to convince the Indian government to preserve the rights of generic producers. The offer has made Cipla a player in United Nations initiatives to lower AIDS drug prices and has helped spearhead an effort by major pharmaceutical companies to further reduce prices. Cipla's pressuring of the Indian government to place import duties on lamivudine and to loosen its price control policies indicates that the company does not always act in the interest of reducing drug prices. The company's proposal to sell AIDS drug through Doctors Without Borders may be a shrewd marketing move given that the humanitarian group does not have the expertise to globally distribute pharmaceuticals and that local doctors may lack the training to dispense and properly dose the medications.
Other CDC News for March 12, 2001
