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TAC welcomes offer to provide cheaper HIV/AIDS tests
Treatment Action Campaign Press Release.
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The Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) welcomes the offer made by Toga laboratories to offer essential HIV/AIDS monitoring tests at a reduced price.
The Southern African HIV Clinicians Society announced the details of the offer yesterday. Even though Toga is an independent laboratory, it is associated with Ampath Laboratories. Ampath is one of the largest private pathology laboratories in South Africa.
The TAC recognises that access to treatment for HIV/AIDS is dependent on both affordable drugs and laboratory tests. During January 2002 the TAC identified the high costs of essential monitoring tests (such as viral load and CD4 count) as barriers to comprehensive treatment of persons living with HIV/AIDS. In particular, one of the TAC campaign objectives for 2002 is to reduce the prices of such tests.
The current costs of private laboratory tests are excessive. Toga's offer represents the first drastic reduction of the costs of providing essential HIV/AIDS monitoring tests in the private sector in South Africa. The offer represents a 50% reduction of private sector costs. The current private sector costs are from ZAR1000 - ZAR1200 (US$95-115). Toga is offering the same tests for approximately ZAR500 ($47). The implications of such a drastic price reduction are enormous. The price reduction has cost implications for many countries in the region, elsewhere in Africa and internationally. It also has cost implications for the medical schemes sector.
For millions of people living with HIV/AIDS in South Africa and around the world, a breakthrough such as this means that access to affordable laboratory tests is becoming a reality. Offers such as this are crucial in increasing access to comprehensive HIV/AIDS treatment.
The TAC therefore calls on all other private laboratories in South Africa to follow Toga's lead by reducing the costs of HIV/AIDS monitoring tests.
In particular, TAC calls on the National Pathology Group (NPG) to discourage both excessive pricing and price fixing in the private pathology sector. Further, we call on the NPG to support and encourage similar initiatives amongst its members so that affordable pathology becomes a reality for all persons living with HIV/AIDS. |
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