Foster City, Calif.-based Gilead Sciences, the maker of the costly Sovaldi hepatitis C treatment, has reached licensing deals with seven generic drug makers in India to sell cheaper versions of the drug in developing countries, according to a New York Times report.
Through the licensing agreements, the Indian manufacturers will be able to manufacture and sell generic versions of the drug for 91 developing countries and pay royalties to Gilead. The population the new agreements will serve account for more than half of the world's hepatitis C-infected population, or more than 100 million people.
In the U.S., Sovaldi costs $1,000 a pill, which totals $84,000 for a typical 12-week treatment. The high price tag has caused concern and stirred up controversy regarding pharmaceutical prices and the value of such treatments. According to the report, Gilead plans to price the drug at $10 per pill in India. A typical course of treatment in India is projected to cost less than $1,800 for a 24-week course, a long treatment period as the hepatitis C virus is generally in a different form in India and requires a longer treatment regimen.
"Really what we're trying to do here through the partnerships we've established is expand availability of chronic hepatitis C therapy, particularly in the developing world," said Gregg Alton, Gilead's executive vice president, according to the report.
However, Sovaldi has received backlash from some patient advocacy groups such as Doctors Without Borders who say the deal doesn't reach far enough, as it does not include many middle-income countries, including Thailand, Brazil and Mexico.
In response to this criticism, Mr. Alton said it is a matter of licenses and pricing. "There are many people who would like to see more countries added to that list, but that is the list we have agreed upon for these licenses," Mr. Alton said, according to the report. "Pricing for Thailand, Mexico or Brazil will be very different than the U.S. price."
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