Mexican AIDS Activists March to Demand National State of Emergency Over Drug Prices...

Mexican AIDS Activists March to Demand National State of Emergency Over Drug Prices and Access in Mexico

AIDS Healthcare Foundation Joins Over 60 Groups in Mexican AIDS
Drug Advocacy Coalition; Marchers Call on Mexico's Secretary of Health
to Step Up Action on AIDS Treatment and Drug Pricing
MEXICO CITY--(Business Wire)--
A group of over 150 AIDS Mexican advocates and activists held a
passionate protest and advocacy march yesterday in Mexico City to
demand that Mexico's Secretary of Health declare a national state of
emergency for HIV/AIDS due to the steep cost and limited availability
of lifesaving antiretroviral drugs throughout Mexico. AIDS Healthcare
Foundation (AHF) the largest US-based AIDS group and operator of free
AIDS treatment clinics in the US, Africa, Asia and Latin
America/Caribbean -- including three free clinics in Mexico (Cancun,
Puerto Vallarta, Tuxtla Gutierrez and Pachuca) joined the broad-based
coalition of over 60 groups and non-government organizations in the
"Coalition of Activists for Universal Access" that spearheaded the
march and protest.

On Tuesday, June 17, the coalition also published a full page open
letter with the call to action in La Jornada, one of the largest
circulation papers in Mexico. The letter, signed by over 60
individuals and group, was addressed to Dr. Jose Angel Cordova
Villalobos, Secretary of Health for the Government of Mexico, called
upon the Secretary to declare a national state of emergency for
HIV/AIDS. The letter noted that Mexico, which will host the XVII
International AIDS Conference later this summer (August 3-8), has as
unique opportunity to demonstrate to the world and international
community advances that Mexico has taken in the reduction of the
prices of AIDS drugs should the Health Minister act in response to the
coalition's demands.

"We call on our Secretary of Health to declare a national state of
emergency for HIV/AIDS in Mexico in order that AIDS drug treatments --
including generic drugs which are usually much less expensive -- can
become far more available throughout Mexico and that more people in
need can access lifesaving AIDS care and antiretroviral treatment,"
Dr. Patricia Campos, Chief of AIDS Healthcare Foundation's Latin
American Bureau and one of the primary organizers of the march. "At
present, only about 38,000 people of the 180,000 people known to be
living with HIV/AIDS in Mexico are on treatment. We simply must do
more to ensure our people in need have access to affordable lifesaving
AIDS drugs, and as the world AIDS community and international media
prepare to come to Mexico for the International AIDS Conference in
August, we believe it is a perfect time for the Mexican Government to
step up its efforts to care for people in need."

"The Street Brigade for the Support of Women 'Elisa Martinez' A.C.
is participating in the Activist Coalition for Universal Access,
because its members are convinced that an individual's health should
not be treated like a commodity and the country governments should not
play the role of managers of transnational pharmaceuticals by
maximizing their profits based on patent protection, thereby issuing a
sure death sentence for persons living with HIV and AIDS who are not
'entitled' to antiretroviral treatment because of insufficient
economic resources," said Jaime Montejo, Coordinator of the
independent News Agency Noti-Calle. "The humanitarian solution of this
situation lies in the hands of the Mexican political class, declaring
a public health emergency for HIV/AIDS in order to guarantee the
universal access to antiretroviral drugs, viral load testing, CD4
counts, HIV genotype studies, HIV/AIDS tests (respecting their
voluntary and confidential nature and subject to informed consent),
treatment of opportunistic diseases, condoms, water based lubricants,
information, correct and non-discriminatory treatment. In the short
term, a declaration of a national state of emergency would facilitate
the conditions so that people living with HIV or AIDS could obtain
testing and treatment services, thereby transforming universal access
to ARVs into a sustainable HIV prevention strategy as well."

Yesterday's march began in the Garden of Composers park in Mexico
City. The group marched a short distance to the national headquarters
for Ministry of the Economy where a brief protest and rally were held.
Several members of the group then presented a manifesto with the
coalition's call to action to Ministry officials. The activists then
proceed to march -- with a full and courteous police escort -- to the
Mexican Secretary of Health's national headquarters about one
kilometer away. There the group also held a lively demonstration in
front of the building while waiting to see if an official member of
the Health Ministry would meet with them to listen to their demands.
After about one-half hour, three members of the coalition were invited
in to meet with Dr. Gabriel R. Maneull Lee, Secretario Particular del
C. Secretario de Salud, to discuss the prices of AIDS drugs in Mexico
and government regulations that discourage the importation of, or
production of generic AIDS medications in Mexico.

Among the many activists marching were protesters who included:

-- The laying out of a ten foot long AIDS ribbon in red roses in
front of the Ministry of Health building;

-- Several activists dressed in medical garb who were writing the
coalition call to action on a canvas square written in their
own blood (which was drawn on the street during the middle of
the demonstrations by a doctor in the march);

-- A "crucified" AIDS activist with the words "VIH/SIDA
emergencia nacional" scrawled across his abdomen who was also
wearing a crown of hypodermic needles. At both the Ministry of
the Economy and the Ministry of Health, he dramatically draped
himself across the barred entry gates to each location, to
show how many Mexican AIDS activists and advocates believe the
apathy and inaction from the government becomes a death
sentence for many of those living with HIV/AIDS.

Certain world bodies classify Mexico as a middle-income country
using Gross National Income (GNI) as its measure. The country has a
per capita income of roughly USD $7,310; however, AIDS drug treatments
that can cost as little as USD $150 in what are designated
least-developed or low-income countries in Africa and elsewhere (e.g.
Uganda, Malawi) can cost as much as USD $8,000 in Mexico -- or about
9.5% more than and average person's income, making these lifesaving
AIDS regimens all but unaffordable to the majority in need there.

This is in part because middle-income countries are usually not
proffered the same drug price reductions as low-income countries.
However, when it comes to country classification, higher overall
average income -- middle-income versus low-income -- does not
necessarily indicate less poverty, and GNI, which divides a country's
total income by its total population to arrive at an estimate of
average individual incomes, often obscures the fact that the majority
of a country's citizens may live in poverty.

About AHF

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) is the nation's largest
non-profit HIV/AIDS organization. AHF currently provides medical care
and/or services to more than 70,000 individuals in 22 countries
worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean and Asia.
Additional information is available at www.aidshealth.org

Photos available at:
http://www.aidshealth.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&
id=1294&Itemid=193

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your Internet browser's address field. Remove the extra space if one
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AIDS Healthcare Foundation
Ged Kenslea, Communications Director
Tel: 323-860-5225
Mobile: 323-791-5526
E-Mail: gedk@aidshealth.org

Copyright Business Wire 2008