
Survival of HIV+ patients starting antiretroviral therapy between 1996 and 2013 - rb2e
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanhiv/article/PIIS2352-3018(17)30066-8/fulltext?elsca1=tlpr
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caio1982
I wonder how the results would change if they had considered countries like
Brazil, which offers a cocktail of ~17 drugs for free for everyone HIV
positive since 1996 (when patents were fought in the supreme court IIRC). Many
americans and europeans (also japanese) come here every year to get some of
these medicines for a fraction of what they would cost back home.

~~~
arcticfox
I'm not a big fan of drug company profits (and the patents that provide them),
but to be fair, I wonder how the results would change without American- and
European-developed drugs.

~~~
aantix
It costs a company 2.5 billion to bring a new drug to market.
[https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/cost-to-
develop-n...](https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/cost-to-develop-new-
pharmaceutical-drug-now-exceeds-2-5b/)

With all of the countries mandating fixed pricing, America subsidizes the rest
of the world.

Take away profits, you take away the company's ability to bring Rx to market
or do new research.

No one pays their fair share for this research, except the U.S.

~~~
jonahhorowitz
This would be more plausible if the companies in question spent more on R&D
than marketing. Also, there are plenty of other ways to fund drug research
besides the exorbitant system we use today.

~~~
aantix
It's a typical engineering fallacy that if you build it they will come.

The public, including doctors, have so much information to consume that if
they aren't re-educated on treatment choices the drug will die and so too may
the company.

Advertising is absolutely critical in recouping R&D costs. And that's assuming
the drug makes it to market (which a majority do not).

>In the United States, it takes an average of 12 years for

>an experimental drug to travel from the laboratory to your

>medicine cabinet. That is, if it makes it. Only 5 in 5,000

>drugs that enter preclinical testing progress to human

>testing. One of these 5 drugs that are tested in people is

>approved.

~~~
marcosdumay
Educating doctors is not a job for the pharma companies.

~~~
pulse7
The funny part is: this "education" often happens on turist attractive
locations like remote islands where doctors can come with their families...
and pharma companies pay the costs... sad reality...

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peter303
"I dont have to practice safe sex, because there is pill for it" As this
article shows the pill doesnt always work.

