Why do so few people have access to HIV/AIDS treatment?
According to UNAIDS, fewer than 4% of people in need of antiretroviral treatment in low- and middle-income countries were receiving the drugs at the end of 2001. This means that only 230,000 people in need of antiretroviral treatment were receiving it, out of 6 million who need it. Half of those 230,000 people live in Brazil. The question is, why? The answer is because Brazil’s government-run programme provides free treatment for AIDS patients by making copies of brand name drugs, called generic medicaments. The Brazilian Government, backed by a strong social movement, has proved beyond doubt that full-scale treatment of AIDS patients is possible in the developing world. Considering that the “survival of the species is at stake”, a law was passed guaranteeing every AIDS patient this treatment. Since 1997, every AIDS patient in Brazil has received free of charge the same triple cocktails that keep people alive in North America and Europe. As a result, Brazil has halved its AIDS death ra
