KUCHING, July 17 — Asean needs to establish a regional mechanism to tackle the high cost of antiretroviral (ARV) drugs for HIV treatment, said Deputy Health Minister Datuk Lukanisman Awang Sauni.
He said the medications are critical in ensuring the continued success of HIV treatment programmes.
“We must collectively explore strategies to secure better pricing, voluntary licensing, and regional procurement solutions. We must move forward not in isolation, but as a unified region,” he said.
He said this when opening the Asean Regional Dialogue titled “Affordable ARV Drugs and Promoting Community-Based Testing for Key Populations” here today.
He said that the average cost of ARV treatment in Malaysia is now about RM500 per year. However, the country is transitioning to a new drug known as Tenofovir-Lamivudine-Dolutegravir (TLD).
“The current ARV costs around RM500 per year. The new TLD costs about RM200 per month, but our goal is to reduce it to at least RM100 per month. Although it is more expensive than the previous ARV, it is significantly more effective in treating patients,” Lukanisman added.
— Bernama
