LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Following FDA approval of Gilead Science’s Complera, its new three-in-one combination AIDS treatment earlier today, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest global AIDS group, challenged the California drug company over the steep price of the antiretroviral therapy—over $20,000 per patient, per year at Wholesale Acquisition Cost (WAC)—a price that is certain to further strain the nation’s already struggling network of AIDS Drug Assistance Programs (ADAPs). ADAPs are federal and state funded, state-run programs that provide life-saving HIV treatments to low income, uninsured, and underinsured individuals living with HIV/AIDS nationwide. As Gilead executives—including CEO John C. Martin—celebrate FDA-approval of Complera today, over 9,000 vulnerable HIV/AIDS patients in 13 states remain on waiting lists to access lifesaving medications through ADAP. In addition, thousands more have been dropped or entirely shut out from the programs as more states permanently restrict eligibility due to state budget crises exacerbated by the high cost of drugs.
