Two months after Malaysia received world recognition for taking steps to provide affordable medicine for Hepatitis C sufferers, it is learnt that 18 state hospitals are ready to roll out the treatment, with up to 400,000 patients likely to benefit.
This access to the affordable medicine comes after the Government issued a compulsory licence (CL) to import or produce the generic versions of sofosbuvir – one of the drug combinations used for Hepatitis C treatment.
The combination of sofosbuvir and daclatasvir is now available in all government state hospitals.
It used to cost RM300,000 for a full course treatment. With the Government initiative, it now costs around RM1,000.
Malaysia is the first country in the world to invoke CL for importing or producing the generic version of sofosbuvir.
Malaysia received the Leadership Award in Intellectual Property and Access to Medicines for being the first to do so in January 2018A source from the company appointed to import sofosbuvir through CL, Pharmaniaga Marketing Sdn Bhd, said the generic version of the drug was delivered to the Health Ministry last week while daclatasvir had been sent earlier.
Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) South-East Asia regional office head Jean-Michel Piedagnel said Malaysia was leading the world in Hepatitis C treatment access.
DNDi is an international non-profit drug research and development organisation.
“We need more of such leadership to tackle the disease,” said Piedagnel.
The contagious liver disease results from infection with the Hepatitis C virus and spreads through contact with the blood of an infected person.
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