Word: retrovirals
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...high price of AZT, sold under the trade name Retrovir, has become one of the most passionate controversies of the AIDS epidemic. Activists have accused Burroughs Wellcome, the drug's manufacturer, of taking unseemly advantage of desperate AIDS patients. AZT, which is being taken by more than half the 42,000 people with AIDS in the U.S., ranks as one of the most expensive drugs on the market. The debate comes at a particularly crucial time for 7,000 AIDS patients who have depended on federal help to buy the drug. The $20 million program to provide them with...
...officials defend their record, noting that all AIDS drugs have been placed on a special fast track. Retrovir went from initial clinical testing to final approval in less than 21 months, in contrast to the usual 8.8 years. Last month the agency proposed rules that would allow doctors to use experimental drugs in life-threatening situations. Says Young: "That is a breakthrough. It's a very propatient orientation...
Ironically, the crash program for developing Retrovir may have contributed to its high price. To make the drug available as quickly as possible, "we have literally turned our company upside down," said Burroughs Wellcome Vice President Thomas Kennedy at a press conference last week. The company says it takes seven months to make the drug and that the high price is needed to offset development and manufacturing costs. Burroughs Wellcome officials also contend that by reducing the need for medical care, Retrovir could, despite its expense, slash the annual cost of treating an AIDS patient from an estimated...
...Retrovir is a palliative, not a cure, and frequently causes serious side effects. Nonetheless, demand is expected to be strong, not only from the nation's 14,000 AIDS patients but from an even larger number with ARC (AIDS- related complex). The question before them: How to pay? About 40% of AIDS patients are covered by Medicaid. In New York and California, Medicaid officials have already decided to reimburse the cost of Retrovir treatment, but other states may choose not to pay for the drug...
While private insurers appear to be willing to pay for Retrovir, what worried many at last week's rally was the large number of AIDS patients who / have no insurance. Democratic Congressman Henry Waxman of California shares the concern: "I don't think it's right to let someone die because they don't have private insurance or the financial resources to pay for the drug." Waxman is seeking $60 million in the 1988 budget, and $30 million this year, to help purchase drugs for indigent AIDS victims. If approved, these funds could help patients like Archie Harrison...