[Ip-health] [Fwd: Aluvia]

[Wim Vandevelde]

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For your information, please find below and attached a joint letter from
the EATG and ATAC for the attention of Miles White of Abbott Laboratories.

Best Regards,
Wim Vandevelde
EATG

_____________________________________________________

Miles White
Chairman and CEO
Abbott Laboratories
100, Abbott Park Road
Abbott Park, IL 60064
U.S.A.

Brussels / New York, April 18, 2007

*_Subject: Abbott / _**_Thailand_**__*

Mr. White:

The European AIDS Treatment Group (EATG) and the AIDS Treatment
Activists Coalition (ATAC) have witnessed several hostile,
unprecedented decisions by Abbott management. The ritonavir price hike
in the U.S. in 2003 and the Brazilian price deal in 2005 are
two examples of a corporation whose ethical underpinnings were of
questionable status.

Abbott's recent decision not to file Aluvia or any other new products in
Thailand is a clear indication that the company may not possess
an ethical compass. Your arrogant and reactionary response to the Thai
government's decision to issue a compulsory license for Aluvia
is a gross repudiation of corporate responsibility, and a complete lack
of regard for the right of a sovereign nation to fend for the health
and well being of its people. Have we not all witnessed the tragic and
unforgivable repercussions of this approach when applied to foreign
policy matters by certain countries?

Unless your corporate management structure lacks the competence to
comprehend response to its actions, Abbott must have anticipated
the international disgust that your decision, unmollified by any recent
price reduction structures in other countries, would engender. This is
so contrary to the productive meetings that EATG has had with your newly
designated HIV/HCV research and advocacy team that we
are both nonplused and very angry. What kind of partnership could
actually be sustained with any company based on repeated violations
of basic decency?

A well-established and regarded corporate franchise is well aware of the
economic stature and political clout it possesses, and deftly
balances corporate and public needs. Recent actions taken by your
company suggest that is a description that is no longer applicable to
Abbott.
The EATG and ATAC applaud Thailand for pursuing a compulsory license for
Aluvia. Generic competition, WHO's intervention and activist
pressure have compelled your company to now offer a 55% reduction in
your tiered pricing for low-and lower-middle income countries.
In light of current and often enduring financial barriers to the
creation of a sustainable and improving market for your products, it
should not
have taken such effort to make what any person with average financial
acumen would label good corporate sense.

So why has your corporation taken punitive and retaliatory actions against =
the country of Thailand? It is difficult, if not risible to envision Thaila=
nd
as an adversary of any consequence to Abbott, considering the crude demonst=
ration that you can, indeed, dictate the terms of the marketplace
in that country.

Despite your announcement of a lower price for Aluvia - a clearly needed dr=
ug in Thailand and many other countries - you still withhold seven
of your products from the Thai market. This is nothing more than brutal sad=
ism masquerading as a corporate strategy to protect profit margins.
The world is well aware of the demands and pressures for corporations to pu=
rsue profits. Even shortsighted, near-term profit making is considered
an acceptable business practice in some sectors. Yet, a special, enduring l=
evel of revulsion is reserved for those corporations whose indecent
and brutal decisions clearly endanger the health and survival of other huma=
n beings.

The Abbott slogan states "a promise for life". The repercussions of your ac=
tions in Thailand betray this corporate identifier as cynical propaganda.
Some shareholders may have short memories and greedy pockets, but serious i=
nvestors aware of the full spectrum of indices that determine a
company's health and investment prospects, as well as patients in need of l=
ife-saving medicines, are unlikely to be impressed. We are most definitely
not impressed. We no longer trust you. Trust may be extended once again in =
the future, but be aware it will be hard earned -- and verified. We must
insist, to the benefit of all parties involved, that you immediately take t=
he following actions.

The EATG and ATAC must witness the immediate registration of Aluvia and oth=
er Abbott products in Thailand. Abbott must publish a comprehensive
list of all countries eligible for Aluvia at a cost of $1,000 and $500 per =
patient per year. This list must also indicate in which countries the new h=
eat-stable
formulation is registered and available, and in which countries the registr=
ation is still pending or yet to be started. These are exceedingly reasonab=
le
requests which pose no threat to the financial health of your corporation. =
Yet, they offer the opportunity to create a very real sense of gratitude in=
 many
sectors. Failure to comply, however, will make it impossible for us to main=
tain our relations with Abbott at the current level.

Sincerely,

European AIDS Treatment Group (EATG)
AIDS Treatment Activists Coalition (ATAC)


CC:
-          WHO DG, Dr Margaret Chan
-          UNAIDS, Dr Peter Piot
-          European AIDS Clinical Society, Dr Jos=E9 Gatel
-          Thai AIDS Treatment Action Group (TTAG)
-          Thai Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS (TNP+)
-          Minister of Public Health Thailand, Dr Mongkol na Songkhla


-----------------------------------
Wim Vandevelde, Director
European AIDS Treatment Group
Place Raymond Blyckaerts 13
B-1050 Brussels, Belgium
Mobile: +351 91 727 52 43
Tel: +32 2 644 42 10
Fax: +32 2 644 33 07
www.eatg.org
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[ ATAC+EATG Abbott Thailand.pdf of type application/pdf deleted ]
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