“What Abbott Was Trying To Hide - Court Unseals Norvir Documents

The Prescription Access Litigation (PAL) Project works to make prescription drug prices more affordable for consumers, using class action litigation and public education. PAL and its members seek to challenge illegal pricing tactics and deceptive marketing by drug companies, Pharmacy Benefit Managers, and other pharmaceutical industry players.

Prescription Access Litigation coalition member SEIU Health and Welfare Fund filed a national class action lawsuit against Abbott. The lawsuit claimed that Abbott violated federal anti-trust laws, alleging that Abbott raised Norvir’s price in order to boost sales of Kaletra, at the expense of competing PI drugs that require Norvir as a booster. In a nutshell, the lawsuit argued that Abbott tried to “leverage” its patent-protected monopoly over Norvir into a monopoly over the market for protease inhibitors. Full Story Here.

The Pulitzer Center And Kwame Dawes ' Living and Loving with HIV in Jamaica'

The Pulitzer Center is an organization with the mission to promote in-depth coverage of international affairs, focusing on topics that have been under-reported, mis-reported - or not reported at all. They are featuring a multimedia project by Kwame Dawes, Titled “Hope: Living and Loving with HIV in Jamaica". Hats off to Kwame and The Pulitzer Center. You can find the multimedia project HERE.

Global Fund Considers Loans To Help Fight HIV

The Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria may loan cash to developing countries when they grow too wealthy to qualify for grants, the fund's director, Michel Kazatchkine, said on Sunday.

HIV Infections Down 20% Since 2001 In Infants

The number of babies born with the virus that causes AIDS or infected by breast milk decreased by 20 percent in six years, according to a United Nations report that credited treatment programs.

New infections dropped to 490,000 in 2007 from about 540,000, the World Health Organization and U.N. Children's Fund said. AIDS deaths among children younger than 15 declined to 290,000 from just more than 300,000, the agencies said.

FDA Approval of VITROS Anti-HIV 1+2 Diagnostic Immunoassay

On March 27, 2008, FDA approved a new HIV diagnostic test, the VITROS Anti-HIV 1+2 Reagent Pack and VITROS Anti-HIV 1+2 Calibrator, manufactured by Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics. The VITROS Anti-HIV 1+2 Reagent Pack and VITROS Anti-HIV 1+2 Calibrator is an in vitro chemiluminescent immunoassay intended for the in vitro qualitative detection of antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus types 1 and 2 in human serum and plasma using the VITROS ECi/ECiQ Immunodiagnostic System.

The results of the VITROS Anti-HIV 1+2 assay, in conjunction with other serological evidence and clinical information may be used as an aid in the diagnosis of infection with HIV-1 and/or HIV-2 in persons with signs or symptoms of, or at risk for, HIV infection.