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MPP‘s voluntary licensing work could benefit millions of patients in low– and middle-income countries
The Medicines Patent Pool (MPP), the world’s only voluntary licensing mechanism in public health, announced an expansion of its mandate today to hepatitis C and tuberculosis medicines. The UNITAID Executive Board, meeting November 4-5 in Geneva, approved the MPP’s proposals to improve access to both life-saving direct acting antivirals (DAAs) to treat hepatitis C and new and re-purposed medicines for tuberculosis. UNITAID created the MPP in 2010 to provide better health options for people living with HIV. To date, MPP has signed agreements for 12 antiretrovirals (ARVs) for countries home to 87-93% of people living with HIV in the developing world.
“I greatly welcome the broadening of the Medicines Patent Pool’s mandate to encompass hepatitis C and tuberculosis, giving MPP a vital opportunity to help secure lower prices for medicines to fight these two lethal diseases,” said Philippe Douste-Blazy, Chair of the Executive Board at UNITAID.
“The MPP is a cornerstone of UNITAID’s efforts to transform the HIV medicines market and rapidly scale up HIV treatment in low- and middle-income countries,” said Lelio Marmora, UNITAID’s Executive Director. “The MPP now joins us in helping to meet international targets to make curative hepatitis C and TB medicines accessible to those who need them.”
The World Health Organization estimates that hepatitis C (HCV) affects between 130 and 150 million people worldwide. The vast majority lives in low- and middle-income countries. New direct acting antivirals that are effective across all major HCV strains could cure millions. Building on its HIV model, the MPP will seek to license for generic manufacture new and pipeline hepatitis C medicines that can eliminate the virus in a short course of oral therapy.