South African Lobbyists Urge HIV/AIDS Patent Violation

Influential South African HIV/AIDS lobby the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) has threatened to take the country's health minister to court over patents on ethical HIV/AIDS drugs. The products, Kaletra and Stocrin, are produced by US drugmakers Abbott Laboratories and Merck & Co., respectively.

The two products were the leading patented products to be distributed under a ZAR3.4bn (US$578.61mn) government tender. The TAC now claims that the patented drugs' "artificially high" prices could lead to "shortages," and has now given Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang a deadline of June 17 to respond.

Nevertheless, it is unlikely that government officials will be able to act on the matter, assuming that sufficient political will existed. A health ministry spokesman has commented that he would be "very surprised" if the ministry were able to intervene.