Bristol-Myers Squibb and Hoffmann-La Roche to Freeze Prices of AIDS Drugs
Drug makers Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. and Hoffmann-La Roche Inc. announced last week that they would not raise the prices of their HIV drugs in certain markets, the Bergen Record reports. Bristol-Myers said that it will not raise the price of its antiretrovirals Zerit and Videx for state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs, while Hoffmann-La Roche said that a price freeze applies to all wholesale prices for its antiretrovirals Hivid, Fortovase and Invirase. Hoffmann-La Roche spokesperson Heather Van Ness said that the company has no "immediate plans" to raise the prices of the drugs next year, while Bristol-Myers' price freeze is in place until at least April 2003. Drug makers Abbott Laboratories and Pfizer Inc. have also said they will not raise prices for drugs supplied to ADAPs for two years, and GlaxoSmithKline announced on June 20 that it will freeze wholesale prices of its AIDS drugs until January 2004. The decision to freeze prices stems from the fact that many state ADAPs are facing tight budgets; 10 of the programs have closed enrollment or limited access to treatment (Krauskopf, Bergen Record, 6/28). A National ADAP Monitoring Project issue brief is available online.
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