NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Roche has announced a major Global Access Program to sharply lower the price of HIV viral load tests in low- and middle-income countries. This new initiative creates a ceiling price of US$9.40 per test, and will reduce Roche’s average price by more than 40% in low- and middle-income countries. When fully implemented, the Global Access Program is projected to save more than US$150 million in costs over the next five years.

By increasing access to viral load testing, this new deal will dramatically improve the quality of HIV treatment services and strengthen capacity to achieve the global goal of ensuring that 90% of all people receiving antiretroviral therapy achieve viral suppression. The high price of viral load testing – is an important reason why less than one in four people on antiretroviral therapy currently have access to viral load testing.