Gilead's Tenofovir 'Access Programme'

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is alarmed at the lack of availability of a key antiretroviral to treat HIV/AIDS, Gilead Science’s tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF), marketed as Viread®. TDF is emerging as an important option of antiretroviral treatment for both patients starting therapy for the first time, and those that require access to newer drugs as they develop resistance to prior first-line regimens. Although Gilead claims that it offers this vital drug at a preferential price in 97 low income countries, the reality is that TDF is registered for use in only six of these. The only way to get access to TDF in many countries is through a burdensome and resource-intensive set of procedures that Gilead imposes. In short, Gilead’s Access Program promises access to TDF for millions of people living with AIDS in developing countries, but fails to deliver.