introduction

The AIDS situation in Latin America and the Caribbean is dire. It is estimated that anywhere from 1.6 million to 2.6 million people are living with HIV in these countries-a number that incorporates the 250,000 who were infected in 2003, alone. In the Caribbean, comprised of relatively smaller countries, over 50, 000 people contracted the virus, and Haiti, the most ravaged country, has a national HIV prevalence of 5.6%. In the larger countries of the South American continent such as Brazil and Argentina, HIV prevalence has decreased due in large part to enormous governmental endeavors to promote sexual awareness and curb prostitution. These measures though, cannot be conducted in rural areas, in addition to being economically infeasible for ravaged countries like Guatemala and Honduras. Already at their breaking point providing all they can for their citizens, these governments and hospitals under their guidance have no opportunity to pay drug companies for new treatment costing upwards of one thousand dollars annually, individually. Attempting to rectify the situation for the sake of Latin America earlier, Brazil's national government began developing labs to pr to produce generic versions of popular generic products for those unable to buy the more expensive retail versions. Far Mangunihos Laboratory, the most prestigious laboratory of those created in the project, in 1998, began intensively researching ways to produce chemical equivalents of the drugs being produced by companies such as Roche, GSK, and Merck. The success of this national project has been prevalent through the generally decreasing trend of HIV/AIDS reported cases each year in the South American continent and a majority of the Latin American subcontinent. In addition, Far Mangunihos is accruing such international prestige that it is able to single handedly negotiate with these major pharmaceuticals and demand lower prices, threatening to eliminate the consumer base of these companies. The problem at hand though, is how these governments will distribute these ARVs and other associated aid to the significant number of impoverished people in the region.

analysis:introduction

global | australia and new zealand | caribbean | east asia and pacific | e.europe and central asia | latin america | middle east and north africa | north america | south and south east asia | sub-saharan africa |
western europe