History of compulsory licensing in China

 June 8, 2012-Reuters: China Changes Patent Law in Fight for Cheaper Drugs (links to Reuters)

 November 10, 2011-Chinese civil society organizations send letter to Abbott Laboratories

Actions in China 

"High treatment costs, as well as poor education, poverty, stigma, and information imbalances, make the voice and bargaining power of the people-living-with HIV community extremely weak in China. Many people living with HIV in China live in poverty, or become poor due to the heavy burden of treatment costs."
-- Jia Ping, Founder and CEO of China Global Fund Watch Initiative

China's GDP per capita in 2010 was around 4,000 U.S. dollars. But the gap between rich and poor is great, with a Gini Coefficient of 0.48. Currently, the market price of Kaletra in China is around 900RMB($150) per month for each AIDS patient ($1800 per person per year), which constitutes a heavy burden for people living with HIV/AIDS who have yet not been covered by the government free ARV treatment program.

China's reported HIV cases total 370,393, including 132,400 people receiving treatment and 68,315 reported deaths. The joint report of China's Ministry of Health, UNAIDS and the World Health Organization estimated 740,000 people live with HIV in China -- with 26,000 deaths in 2009.

People living with HIV in rural areas face exacerbated challenges, including poverty. In urban areas, many people living with HIV dare not disclose their health status, for fear of losing their jobs and livelihood due to stigma and social discrimination.

China Global Fund Watch Initiative and the Access to Medicines Research Group sent a letter to Abbott Laboratories requesting an open license, which would enable China to access affordable generic lopinavir + ritonavir. 

Copy of the letter sent by Chinese civil society organizations to Abbott Laboratories, (11/10/2011)





 Return to the Kaletra Campaign Homepage


Copyright © 2013 Public Citizen. All rights reserved. This Web site is shared by Public Citizen Inc. and Public Citizen Foundation.
  Learn More about the distinction between these two components of Public Citizen.


Public Citizen, Inc. and Public Citizen Foundation

 

Together, two separate corporate entities called Public Citizen, Inc. and Public Citizen Foundation, Inc., form Public Citizen. Both entities are part of the same overall organization, and this Web site refers to the two organizations collectively as Public Citizen.

Although the work of the two components overlaps, some activities are done by one component and not the other. The primary distinction is with respect to lobbying activity. Public Citizen, Inc., an IRS § 501(c)(4) entity, lobbies Congress to advance Public Citizen’s mission of protecting public health and safety, advancing government transparency, and urging corporate accountability. Public Citizen Foundation, however, is an IRS § 501(c)(3) organization. Accordingly, its ability to engage in lobbying is limited by federal law, but it may receive donations that are tax-deductible by the contributor. Public Citizen Inc. does most of the lobbying activity discussed on the Public Citizen Web site. Public Citizen Foundation performs most of the litigation and education activities discussed on the Web site.

You may make a contribution to Public Citizen, Inc., Public Citizen Foundation, or both. Contributions to both organizations are used to support our public interest work. However, each Public Citizen component will use only the funds contributed directly to it to carry out the activities it conducts as part of Public Citizen’s mission. Only gifts to the Foundation are tax-deductible. Individuals who want to join Public Citizen should make a contribution to Public Citizen, Inc., which will not be tax deductible.

 

To become a member of Public Citizen, click here.
To become a member and make an additional tax-deductible donation to Public Citizen Foundation, click here.