Responding to ViiV's announcement on long-acting cabotegravir , UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima said:
"New HIV prevention medication, in the form of a long-acting injection, could transform the lives of people who struggle to take daily pills. The option of an injection that only needs to be taken once every few months is vital for people who face stigma when seen with pills, and those who are driven underground by criminalizing laws.
The people most in need of this long-acting option include adolescent girls, LGBTQ+ people, sex workers, and people who use drugs.
The arrival of long-acting injections is truly a game-changer - it can help prevent millions of new HIV infections.
But this will only happen if everyone who would benefit has access. When medicines are lifesaving, delays are fatal.
To ensure affordable pricing and worldwide available for everyone who needs these medicines, enabling access to generic versions in all low- and middle-income countries is essential. But ViiV continues to lock out many low- and middle-income countries from this possibility. Shockingly, the company has even launched a legal challenge against Colombia for trying to access a generic version of another lifesaving HIV medicine, dolutegravir.
ViiV's announcement on increasing production of long-acting cabotegravir is a welcome first step, but their next steps must follow fast. It is not enough for ViiV to increase the number of doses up for sale.
I urge ViiV to show leadership on access to medicines now by announcing an affordable not-for-profit price, dropping its harmful legal challenge, and enabling all low and middle-income countries to access generic versions of its medicines.
